Cornerstone Youth Home is a community-driven solution serving students, ages 6 through 11, who are experiencing homelessness and transience. We provide long-term, stable housing to the children while working with their families to resolve issues surrounding education, employment, health, and housing, increasing a student’s capacity for life-long educational success by disrupting the cycle of homelessness and transience in a safe, stable, restorative practice home environment. On average, there are 350+ self-identified students who experience housing instability during a school year just in York City School District (YCSD). Typically, 2nd and 3rd grade children experience the highest concentration.

Creative Art therapy involves the use of techniques such as drawing, painting, collage, coloring, and sculpting to help Children express themselves artistically and examine the psychological and emotional undertones in their art. With the guidance of a credentialed art therapist, Children “decode” the nonverbal messages, symbols, and metaphors often found in these art forms, which should lead to a better understanding of their feelings and behavior so they can move on to resolve deeper issues.

Talk with your therapist about why you want to find help and learn what the therapist has to offer.

Develop a treatment plan that involves the creation of artwork.

Therapist will observe your process as you work and ask you questions about your experience and feelings.

Creative Art therapy is founded on the belief that self-expression through artistic creation has therapeutic value for those who are healing or seeking deeper understanding of themselves and their personalities. Art therapists are trained through the American Art Therapy Association to understand the roles that color, texture, and various art media play in the therapeutic process and how these tools help reveal one’s thoughts, feelings, and psychological disposition. Art therapy integrates psychotherapy and visual arts as a specific, standalone form of therapy, but it is also used in combination with other types of therapy.

Children’s Aid Society currently accepts Access (Medical Assistance) at all of our centers. We offer reasonable rates on a sliding scale for self-pay clients. For more information on our sliding fee scale or financial assistance, please visit or contact one of our three centers.

Offering parents a comfortable location to talk about the stresses, anxieties and complex issues of parenting.

At Family Support Groups, parents can expect to share with others who are going through some of the same experiences, learn from one another, including experienced parents and trained volunteers, receive information on available community resources and topics related to parenting. and improve parenting skills and relationships with children and families.

Support Groups are free of charge and welcome parents and legal guardians to attend!

Ongoing weekly meetings (except for holidays).

Weekly children’s group while parents meet.

Snacks and beverages for both parents and children.

We are currently not holding community based Parent support groups at this present time. When groups start up again we will post the current schedule. Thank you for your understanding.

For more information or to inquire, contact our Parent Support Group Director at 717-845-5771 ext. 105.

Clothing his angels on earth
God’s Closet opens its doors at Nicarry Center in New Oxford, PA—where every family is welcomed with love.

Keeping up with a rapidly growing child is expensive. Children’s Aid Society and the Adams County Foster Parents Association have partnered to create God’s Closet for families in need. Staffed by volunteers, this “store” has children’s clothing and essentials offered to families free of charge.

The hours at our God’s Closet program at The Nicarry Center have been adjusted to better meet the needs of the community.

Open every Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM.

If you have an immediate need or can’t visit during regular hours, appointments can be made

Interested in volunteering with God’s Closet?
Visit www.cassd.org and fill out our Volunteer Interest Form.

We also welcome donations of gently used or new:

• Children’s clothing (infant through junior sizes)

• Maternity clothing

• Shoes

• Books

• School supplies

• Toys

Donation Drop-Off Hours:
Monday through Thursday, 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM

Thank you for supporting local families!

Learn new parenting skills.

Be supported as you practice these skills.

Grow your confidence and pride in yourself to be able to handle all the up’s and down’s of parenting.

The Incredible Years Series (IYS) is a prevention and intervention program designed to strengthen positive relationships between parents and children. Families can expect an evidence-based approach that is proven to improve parenting practices, children’s behavior, and overall family dynamics. The parenting program is recommended by the American Psychological Association Task Force as meeting the stringent criteria for empirically supported mental health interventions for children with conduct problems. The Incredible Years is also recognized by Blueprints for Violence Prevention and SAMHSA as a model program for promoting social competence and reducing behavioral concerns.

**Free Dinner and Childcare. Transportation Assistance Available**

We offer short term respite care (day/overnight), 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for children newborn through six years of age. The Lehman Crisis Nursery is one of only three such programs in the state of Pennsylvania.

Overnight Clients should call ahead (717-845-5771) and schedule an appointment to be placed on the waiting list.

Walk ins are accepted (if space is available).

The average stay for a child is three overnights. During his or her stay at the Crisis Nursery each child receives care by trained, loving staff and volunteers. These professionals provide individual attention to children who are coming from stressful environments. Parents are encouraged to visit with their children by phone or in person each day.

Please plan approximately one-hour (depending on the number of children) on your first visit for the intake process and approximately 30 minutes for future stays in the Crisis Nursery. This is where we will need to complete paperwork related to your child in our care.

Our 24-Hour Hotline and Referral Service is available to parents and caregivers. Trained and caring staff listen, offer immediate support, and help callers work through their crisis. Staff provide callers with referrals to other community resources that will help resolve issues and provide additional support.

Call the 24-hour hotline at 1 (800) 635-6619

For Overnight Clients: Please call ahead (717-845-5771) and schedule an appointment to be placed on the waiting list.

Walk ins are accepted (if space is available).

Children’s Aid Society provides professional child-focused therapeutic services to children in York, Adams, and Franklin Counties ages 3-17. Our clinical staff has a wide diversity of specialized training, including play and art therapy, to meet the needs of children and adolescents in a safe, supportive and confidential environment. Most clinicians are trained trauma therapists, with specialization in the Trauma Focused- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) evidenced based treatment modality.

As with any form of therapy, your first session will consist of your talking to the therapist about why you want to find help and learning what the therapist has to offer. Together, you will come up with a treatment plan that involves creating some form of artwork. Once you begin creating, the therapist may, at times, simply observe your process as you work, without interference or judgment. When you have finished a piece of artwork—and sometimes while you are still working on it—the therapist will ask you questions along the lines of how you feel about the artistic process, what was easy or difficult about creating your artwork, and what thoughts or memories you may have had while you were working. Generally, the therapist will ask about your experience and feelings before providing any observations.

Art therapy is founded on the belief that self-expression through artistic creation has therapeutic value for those who are healing or seeking deeper understanding of themselves and their personalities. According to the American Art Therapy Association, art therapists are trained to understand the roles that color, texture, and various art media can play in the therapeutic process and how these tools can help reveal one’s thoughts, feelings, and psychological disposition. Art therapy integrates psychotherapy and some form of visual arts as a specific, stand-alone form of therapy, but it is also used in combination with other types of therapy.

Children’s Aid Society currently accepts Access (Medical Assistance) at all of our centers. We oer reasonable rates on a sliding scale for self-pay clients. For more information on our sliding fee scale or financial assistance, please visit or contact one of, our three centers.

Families voluntarily bring their children to our center for a variety of reasons, including:

The average stay for a child is three overnights. During his or her stay at the Crisis Nursery each child receives care by trained, loving staff and volunteers. These professionals provide individual attention to children who are coming from stressful environments. Parents are encouraged to visit with their children by phone or in person each day.

For Overnight Clients: Please call ahead (717-845-5771) and schedule an appointment to be placed on the waiting list

For Day Respite Clients: For clients who wish to use the Crisis Nursery for Day Respite services only, it’s requested that they make an appointment when they know the date(s) they would like to utilize the Crisis Nursery. Priority in scheduling is given to overnight respite clients.

Walk ins are accepted (if space is available).

Please plan approximately one-hour (depending on the number of children) on your first visit for the intake process and approximately 30 minutes for future stays in the Crisis Nursery. This is where we will need to complete paperwork related to your child in our care.

“Art can permeate the very deepest part of us, where no words exist” – Eileen Miller

Family Advocacy is an intensive and comprehensive outreach program, for families referred by staff at the Crisis Nursery. When parents and guardians use the Crisis Nursery on a repeated basis, it indicates that their challenges cannot be resolved in the three days that their children are staying at the Crisis Nursery.

Family Advocacy is intended to help families achieve and maintain stability through referrals to appropriate community resources, home visitation to monitor progress, and ongoing emotional support and encouragement. The family advocate visits families in their homes to assess home circumstances and to link the family to other needed community resources.

Our Family Advocate collaborates with these families to provide increased, individualized support. She works with caregivers to understand the goals they have for their family and the myriad of obstacles they face. She then helps them find the community resources they need to provide a supportive environment for their children.

For more information on our Family Advocacy program, please call 717-845-5771

God’s Closet is hosted at The Nicarry Center in New Oxford, PA.!

Everyone knows that keeping a rapidly growing child in clothes is expensive

The Children’s Aid Society and the Adams County Foster Parents Association partnered to create God’s Closet to help families in need.

Staffed by volunteers, this free children’s clothing “store” is located at The Nicarry Center in New Oxford. Donations are coordinated, received, and organized into bins by age and gender. Low-income families can come and “shop” for clothes, shoes, and coats for their children ages 12 and under. If we have toys, books, or diapers in stock, they are welcome to those too.

(*Appointments can be requested at other times. )

Donations are always welcome, and anyone can refer a family to this service by calling 717-624-4461.

**Free Lunch and Childcare. Transportation Assistance Available** 

**we walked away from this course with  new friends , new tools, and the  improved perspective we needed**

-previous participants in the IY series

Offering parents a comfortable location to talk about the stresses, anxieties and complex issues of parenting

At Parent Support Groups, parents can expect to share with others who are going through some of the same experiences, learn from one another, including experienced parents and trained volunteers, receive information on available community resources and topics related to parenting. and improve parenting skills and relationships with children and families.

Support Groups are free of charge and welcome parents and legal guardians to attend!

Signups are not required to attend, however if you are attending for the first time and bringing your child/children, please call prior so enough childcare is available.

For more information or to inquire, contact our Parent Support Group Director at 717-845-5771 ext. 105

Cornerstone Youth Home is a community-driven solution serving students, ages 6 through 11, who are experiencing homelessness and transience.

Cornerstone Youth Home is a community-driven solution serving students, ages 6 through 11, who are experiencing homelessness and transience. We provide long-term, stable housing to the children while working with their families to resolve issues surrounding education, employment, health, and housing, increasing a student’s capacity for life-long educational success by disrupting the cycle of homelessness and transience in a safe, stable, restorative practice home environment. On average, there are 350+ self-identified students who experience housing instability during a school year just in York City School District (YCSD). Typically, 2nd and 3rd grade children experience the highest concentration.

Our 24-Hour Hotline and Referral Service is available to parents and caregivers. Trained and caring staff listen, offer immediate support, and help callers work through their crisis. Staff provide callers with referrals to other community resources that will help resolve issues and provide additional support.

Call the 24-hour hotline at 1 (800) 635-6619