Cross Creek Programs

Victoria’s Life Contract

Evan — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 22:18:03 +0000

When an enrolled student reaches what is called PC3, or Parent Child 3, they start their life contract and when it is completed both the parent and child sign it. By signing it the child agrees to any behavioral changes in the contract such as not hanging out with bad influences, limiting their Facebook and cell phone times etc. By doing so it helps the child slowly ease him or herself back into their normal family life without everything thrown at them too fast, and helps the parents limit all of the negative things in their child’s life that resulted in him/her making poor life choices. Attached to this entry is a life contract made by one of our students, all personal contact information including last names, excluding Cross Creek Staff, have been removed for personal safety and security.

Victoria’s life contract

Isabellas Graduation Speech

Evan — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 21:08:54 +0000

Hi I’m Isabella; I’m a pure, humble, and worthwhile young woman!

My purpose for being up here today is not only to graduate and go home but to know that I inspired, opened eyes, and motivated most if not some of you.

I’m going to be sharing a poem that one of my closest friends here, Victoria, wrote. This applies to all of us. This is our story.

Addiction, Recovery, Sobriety

Addiction
Something so hard to overcome
I turned into someone I never thought I’d become
I became lost, someone I didn’t know
My biggest enemy, my greatest foe
I didn’t care, didn’t think twice
I lost it all to the toss of the dice
I danced with the devil
We made a bet
I played my life
Like Russian roulette
I gave up my family
For my life and friends
I thought I was happy
But it was coming to an end
I was forced to Cross Creek
Angry as can be
I didn’t want to change
I wanted to be “free”
What I thought of as free
Was drinking alcohol, smoking weed
And finally, I found my inner peace
I was caught and now released
Sobriety
It’s a life style choice
Commitment, persistence, and a raise of voice
There are bumps on the road
But it’s no place to stop
Sobriety
It’s tough I was told
And I’m giving it all I got
I’m excited to live my life
And all that’s left to wander
It’s going to be hard
But what doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.

*WAIT FOR APPLAUSE (VICTORIA)*

So these are my final words for my friends and my peers:

For all the people that are in color, level 1, or waiting to get pulled, my biggest advice is to give it a fair shot. Stop swimming against the current, you’re not hurting your family or anyone around you, the only person you are hurting is yourself. Life is too short so give it all you got. Why sit here wasting your time, when you can be truly enjoying life, all it takes is believing in yourself. It is tough, it’s hard, I’m not going to lie, but in the end it’s all worth it. Look at me now, I’m here with my family, cross creek and high school graduate and I’m going home after 10 months, to live my life, I did it, and any of you can do it too. We’re all just flesh and blood, there’s no difference between us, the only difference it the commitment, persistence, willingness, and determination. So it’s all up to you, know that you guys can do it, because you can, no one else can do it for you.

For all my high levels, and everyone else:

My brother once told me, “Do what you love, and do it often. If you don’t like something, change it. Stop over analyzing. All of your emotions are beautiful, embrace them. When you eat, appreciate, life is simple, enjoy every last bite of it. Open your mind, arms, and heart to new people and things. We are united in our differences. Travel often. Getting lost will help you find yourself. Some opportunities come once, grab and cherish them. Life is about the people you meet and what you create with them, so go out and start creating. Life is short, so dream big, and live it.

I would like to thank everyone that has supported me and guided me to my greatness.

To my Cross Creek girls, B and C group:

Keep on fighting for your dreams with class and style. Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside of you that is greater than any obstacle. Thank you all for being with me through this amazing journey.

To my staff and teachers:

You guys don’t get paid enough for everything you do to deal with us. I would like to thank you for your unconditional support and love. I know it gets tough and overwhelming but just remember to keep the standards high and don’t give up.

To radio 3’s and administrators:

You guys have always been the backbone to the facility. Thank you for your encouraging words and inspiring me with your positivity. You guys have taught me great life lessons and have always been there for a hug or two, keep up the great work. Keep uniting us as one. Thank you for never giving up on us.

To Ms. Kathy, Brian, Ms. Jean, and Darrell:

Thank you for everything you have helped me overcome and for being firm when I needed it the most. You guys have held me up to my greatness, never once letting me slide. Thank you for the unconditional love and support.

Garth:

Since the beginning, you have believed in me, I consider you my angel on Earth and an unconditional friend. Thank you for listening and helping me through the toughest moments in my life. Never once did you judge me for my past. Words can’t describe how thankful I am to have you in my life; I don’t know what I would have done without you. Thank you.

To my family back home:

I can’t thank you enough for giving me the opportunity to learn and grow. To my mom and step dad, thank you for the unconditional support and love. Thank you for the commitment, hard work, and patience you have had with me these past months. Thank you for never giving up and believing in me. You guys have given me a second chance and I’m going to make you proud. To my brother and sister, thank you for the encouraging words in every letter, and for holding me up when I was about to give up.

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

*WAIT FOR APPLAUSE (VICTORIA)*

Last names withheld/deleted for privacy reasons.

Cross Creek Ranch Program

Evan — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 22:11:09 +0000

To all parents with a child currently enrolled at Cross Creek Programs, as some of you may or may not know Cross Creek Programs has a beautiful Pond House and ranch in a nearby town called Toquerville. One of the things we like to offer to your kids is some time to have some fun there, whether it’s a BBQ, upper level party or part of group therapy, however one aspect some of the kids miss out on is having fun at our ranch. We want to make sure that the kids get to take advantage of all the opportunities for a good time we have to offer, and if your child is one of the few who isn’t able to participate we encourage you to speak with your family rep about getting a release signed so they can share in the fun as well.

If you have any questions regarding the release or Cross Creeks’ ranch you’re more than welcome to call your family rep, or Beverly at our front desk at (435) 635-6007. And if you’d like to see some of the fun they get to have at the ranch go to our pictures section under “Parent Login” and log in with the password provided by your family rep.

Scorekeeping

Evan — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 22:01:42 +0000

Today was really fun! A few other upper levels and myself went to St. George for the huntsman World Series. The huntsman games is a world softball tournament for senior citizens. They are the best at softball in the world for their age group. Today I spend about 12 hours scorekeeping. Everyone at the Hunstman Games, umpires and players, were very positive and kind. I had a great time today and I felt awesome to help out and give back!

Kade
10/09/12

Dodgeball/Basketball Tournament

Evan — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 04:50:15 +0000

So a few days ago, on Sunday, we did a really fun activity for the entire facility, Cross Creek and Horizon girl and boys had a blast. We did a very competitive, but fun, dodgeball tournament and we also did a cool basketball tournament which was fun as well. There was music playing and the positive vibe that we had in the gym between all of us was just astounding. I really enjoyed socializing with new people, and just being together and having fun. This was not for a holiday either. This was just a random thing that they decided to do and I really appreciated it and enjoyed it too.

Zack R
10/09/12

Service Project

Evan — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 05:24:24 +0000

Yesterday I went on a service project with some of the other upper levels in Cross Creek and Horizon as well. We were all helping out at the St. George Annual Marathon, and I had a blast. We were helping the runners get their clothes and belongings back and afterwards we helped put everything else away, like the extra clothes left behind, and putting all of the supplies used for the marathon. I had a lot of fun getting away for a little while and spending quality time with my friends. I also really enjoyed socializing with new people, some of which were from other programs, and I also got to eat a lot of great food too. It felt great to help out, and I had a tong of fun doing so. For me, doing the work to become an upper level was so worth it because of days where we get to do things like this and help out others. I am very glad that I got to go on the St. George Annual Marathon service project and I had a great time.

Zach
10/06/12

Cross Country

Evan — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 05:19:10 +0000

This Cross Country meet we went to Escalante and did the track. It was kind of hard because they had a sand trap that was 15 meters long. It was fun and we ate good food. Rudie came in 6th, Dustin came in 15, Kade placed in the 20′s, Ryan placed in the 30′s, and Todd in 46th. There was a total of 49 kids at this meet. The team as a whole has done really well this season, and we hope to go to state with the whole team this year. It looks really promising.

Dustin
10/04/12

Working on Communication

Evan — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 05:13:58 +0000

Well, Cross Creek has been an adventure, no doubt about that. It has been an adventure filled with ups and downs, mountains to climb, and walls to break down. The biggest thing I have really looked at and practiced here has been communication. Everything in your life depends on how effectively you can communicate with others around you. I know hundreds of different ways to explain this to people. Every single word means something different to every single individual. Communication is key. What I find amazing is how far I have come. I first chose to isolate myself; not risking the pressure and fear of being social with others, keeping all of my hurt inside, bottling it up until I let it out by raging against others and property, and with no self-confidence or self-love for myself. This program is do-able… don’t listen to what anyone else says. Once I got to the point where I changed myself because I wanted to, it all became clearer and it became easier to progress, and the pressure lifted. Now, I am Level 6, ready to go home, excited about life, I express my feelings openly with my mother and family, and I love being social with others as long as they are respectful towards me and people around me.

Hayden
10/05/12

St George Marathon Service Project

Evan — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 05:10:24 +0000

Today was pretty cool, one of the Horizon Staff, Jason, took me along with a few other upper levels on a service project. The service project was making gift bags for a marathon is St George. The gift bags included everything from protein to foot powder. Our goal was to have 5000 bags done by the end of the day and me and the other upper levels got organized in assembly lines to increase efficiency. We all worked hard together and met our goal. The other people we worked with were very kind and helpful and treated us to some pizza for lunch. Overall it was a fun day! I love giving back to the people because it is one of the best feelings in the world.

Kade
10/04/12

Cross Country – Sand Hollow

Evan — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 05:06:37 +0000

Our last meet for Cross Country was at Sand Hollow. It was a home meet, Sand Hollow is a golf resort/reservoir that has a beautiful landscape. I would not mind staying there for a week or two. We got one of our star players back because he finally started doing good again, Rudie came in 10th place, Ryan 28th, Cole 30th, Dustin 33rd (Because I rolled my ankle) and kade came in 37th. It was a great meet and we had lots of fun running it and helping set it up.

Dustin
10/03/12