If you like to give through the Internet, you can now make a donation right from your computer. Abbott House has teamed up with Network for Good to offer you the opportunity to impact one of the girls lives here at Abbott House while you surf the Web. All donations will come directly to Abbott House's Foundation. The Abbott House Foundation provides operational support, endowment security, and building funds for Abbott House. Your support of Abbott House's Foundation is greatly appreciated.

Client Profile

Since its founding in 1939, the needs of the girls served by Abbott House have changed. Abbott House is working to enhance its services to meet those needs. Girls placed in Abbott House have endured extreme trauma in their lives. Sexual, physical, emotional, and mental abuse is often present in their lives. Some girls have been diagnosed with depression. Others have a hard time making and maintaining healthy personal relationships. These girls often act out with self-harming behaviors in response to these situations. Their self-esteem is low. Some girls fight; skip school; run away; steal; and abuse drugs, alcohol, or both. Often, these girls have thoughts of suicide.

The words of one youth says it best: “I came to Abbott House to better myself and become a mentally healthy individual. The past seven months I have learned how to cope with my abuse and depression. I have also learned to overcome my fear of talking about my past.”

Abbott House youth often come from South Dakota, Minnesota, or North Dakota, but Abbott House is not constrained by regional boundaries. Girls come to Abbott House in a variety of ways; referral agencies, schools, courts, and parents contact Abbott House about admission. Oftentimes, girls come to Abbott House after they have experienced failed placements in relatives’ homes or in foster homes. A thorough evaluation of the youth’s circumstances, needs, and the benefit she would derive from placement in a residential setting is considered. Each youth is assessed to determine the individual program that will best meet recovery needs. All youth must be supported in their treatment by one or more family members. These family members attend family therapy sessions and support the treatment initiatives both while the girl lives at Abbott House and upon her return home.

Abbott House: Focus on Youth

The work of Abbott House centers on six main values: ethics, nurturance, excellence, family-focused, individualized, and empowerment. These six values serve as cornerstones for all treatment initiatives and interactions with the girls and their families.

• Ethics: The work at Abbott House is grounded in professionalism, compassion, equality, integrity and honesty.
• Nurturance: Abbott House provides a working and helping environment to children, youth, parents and staff that is safe, supportive and nurturing.
• Excellence: Abbott House constantly strives to improve services and professional skills. Abbott House demonstrates an uncompromising commitment to excellence by implementing systems for quality improvement and accreditation.
• Family Focused: Abbott House devotes its efforts to promoting and facilitating the permanence of a family life for children and youth.
• Individualized: The unique and diverse needs and strengths of children, youth, and families will be the priority in the provision of tailored services.
• Empowerment: Abbott House will enhance the talents, knowledge and compassion of children, youth, families, communities and staff by providing training, services and information.