Beyond Shelter: A Bold New Vision for the Children's Receiving Home.

If a child in our community had nowhere safe to go tonight, where would they sleep?

I'm speaking with Glynis Butler-Stone, CEO of the Children’s Receiving Home of Sacramento, and Amber Robbins, a nonprofit leader whose own childhood was spent navigating violence, foster care, and multiple stays at the Receiving Home. Together, we explore an 80-year legacy that has quietly supported tens of thousands of kids in their darkest moments—and the funding crisis that now threatens that work.

Glynis shares how the Children’s Receiving Home evolved from a World War II–era shelter into a six-acre campus offering crisis shelter, residential mental health treatment, a trauma-informed preschool and suicide prevention outreach. Amber brings the lived experience—what it felt like to be ripped from her mother’s arms, to land at the Receiving Home in the middle of the night, and to finally feel safe enough to sleep.

We also talk honestly about the policy changes that now limit them to serving just 16 children at a time, leaving 70+ beds empty while kids in our region sleep in cars, police stations, and out-of-county placements. And we dig into the bold vision to reinvent the campus as a housing and healing hub for transition-age youth and families in crisis—if the community can help bridge the funding gap.

If you care about foster youth, childhood trauma, or what real safety and dignity can look like for kids, this conversation will stay with you.

We'll cover:

• How the Children’s Receiving Home grew from a wartime shelter in 1944 into a mental health and healing campus serving an estimated 80,000 children over 80 years
• The reality of abuse, violence, and protective custody from a child’s point of view—and why Amber says the Receiving Home was the first place she truly felt safe
• The current continuum of care: emergency shelter, residential treatment, the Sprouts trauma-informed preschool, and suicide prevention and housing support for foster and former foster youth
• The impact of federal and state legislation that capped capacity at 16 youth, leaving dozens of beds empty while need is rising
• A collaborative effort with nine local nonprofits to map gaps in services and reimagine the campus for transition-age youth (18–24), survivors of domestic violence, trafficking, and other crises
• The dream of a “Life Academy” where young adults can learn the basics of living on their own—financial literacy, cooking, cleaning, job readiness, and more
• Why private philanthropy, corporate partners, and individual donors are essential to raising $1.5 million in bridge funding to carry this vision into 2026

Learn more & get involved. Visit the website https://crhkids.org/

Thank you so much for listening to this nonprofit story! We appreciate you. Please visit the website to sign up for our email updates and newsletter. https://www.nonprofpod.com/ And if you like, leave me a voicemail to comment on the program, leave a question for us to ask in the future or a message for me, Jeff Holden. I may even use your voice mail message in a future episode of one of our incredible local nonprofit organizations. https://www.nonprofpod.com/voicemail. Thanks again for your support in listening, commenting and sharing the great work our local nonprofits are accomplishing.

Transcript

Glynis Butler-Stone: [00:00:00] So in 80 years, we've evolved from a shelter to being a shelter and mental health treatment services, and we estimate that we've probably served about 80,000 children in our history. What we've been doing this last year is really embracing our legacy and we've been really embracing our name. And so to receive means, to accept means to welcome, it means to bear the weight.

We really, without community support, are not gonna be able to continue to receive children without our community coming together. And we really wanna be able to give kids the opportunity to heal, to find hope, and to become all the greatness that they can be.

Jeff Holden: Welcome to the nonprofit Podcast Network here. Our purpose and passion are simple to highlight the incredible nonprofits that make our communities stronger. Each episode is a chance for [00:01:00] these organizations to tell their story in their words, sharing not just what they do, but why it matters to the people they serve, to their supporters, and to all of us who believe in the power of community.

Through podcasting, we hope to amplify their voices, inspire connection, and give them one more tool to reach the hearts of donors, partners, and neighbors alike. This work is made possible through the generous support of our founding partners captrust, offering fiduciary advice for endowments and foundations serving Sacramento, Roseville, and Folsom, and online@captrust.com.

And Western Health Advantage, a local not-for-profit health plan that believes healthcare is more than coverage. It's about caring From supporting the American Heart Association to making arts and wellness accessible for all. Western Health Advantage truly delivers healthcare with heart. Learn more@westernhealth.com.

I'm proud to welcome our [00:02:00] newest partner, core executive leadership and comprehensive support services. Working in it so you can work on it. Visit cx OR e.com. The Children's receiving Home of Sacramento holds a very personal place in my story that you'll hear in the episode. More importantly in this conversation, you'll hear a far deeper story than my connection, one that spans 80 years of protecting kids healing trauma, and reimagining what safety can look like for vulnerable youth.

I'm joined by CEO Glynis Butler Stone, whose own journey began as a college volunteer in the tiny point store closet, and eventually led her to lead the organization through a global pandemic and a massive shift in how children's services are funded. You'll also hear from Amber Robbins, a successful nonprofit leader herself who entered the children's receiving home as a scared little girl, fleeing violence, who [00:03:00] now returns as a powerful advocate and partner using her lived experience to expand hope and housing for others.

Together we explore how a wartime shelter grew into a campus of mental health treatment, trauma-informed preschool suicide prevention, and a bold new vision to turn vacant beds into a vibrant hub for transition, age youth and families in crisis. If you care about kids, foster youth, mental health, or simply what it means to give children a true sense of safety and dignity, this is a conversation you'll definitely appreciate.

Glenys Butler Stone, Amber Robbins, welcome to the Nonprofit Podcast Network. 

Amber Robbins: Thank you. Thank you so much. 

Jeff Holden: I am really excited to have this conversation and you'll know why in just a second. So before we actually get going, I have some that share that's in full transparency. The children's receiving home really holds a special place in my heart for a very different way than what we're gonna be addressing.[00:04:00] 

I met the woman I would eventually marry when we were working on a fundraiser for the organization, and she was the HR person and staff development trainer. So my wife was an employee there for about eight years as it was being built into its current iteration. Now we can get on with the story. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: That's beautiful.

Yeah. 

Jeff Holden: The nickel. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yeah. Very cool. Cool. 

Jeff Holden: So Glenys, let's start with a little history for the benefit of those that are not as familiar with the organization. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Okay. 

Jeff Holden: First and foremost. What has the children's receiving home been doing for roughly the last 80 years? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Well, we were, we were founded in 1944 by the Rotary of Sacramento and the Junior League of Sacramento.

And the original intention was, was part of the war efforts to be able to help families that were. By World War II with, um, men and women going off to serve their country and not having places for children to stay. So that was where we started. Fast forward to the 1960s and we [00:05:00] began to serve a population of youth that were abused and neglected and were served by Child Protective Services.

And so that's where our partnership with Sacramento County Child Protective Services really started in the sixties. And we built the campus that we're on right now, which is six acres and has a hundred bed. On this particular campus, we then about 2000, determined that the kids that we were serving really had intensive mental health treatment needs.

So we've added a whole contingent of mental health services to our, our programs that we offer now. So in 80 years, we've evolved from a shelter to being a shelter and mental health treatment services, and we estimate that we've probably served about 80,000 children in our history, 

Jeff Holden: which is amazing. Just amazing.

This is not your first. Rodeo at the children's receiving home either. No, it's 

Glynis Butler-Stone: not. 

Jeff Holden: So tell us a little bit about that. What, what brought you back as CEO? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Well, I actually have an interesting journey because I, I started off when I [00:06:00] was in college as a volunteer, uh, to earn college credits and I could pick a charity that I could go volunteer for, and I picked.

The receiving home. I didn't know anything about it. I didn't know anything about kids in foster care and I had the honor of running what's called the Point Store. And Amber does remember the Point store. It's a very, I remember the Point store. It's a very special closet. Yes, it's a closet to adults, but to children, it's magical.

And so it hooked me 'cause the kids could earn points, they could buy. Toys and candy and goodies and makeup now and cologne and such. And so I ended up staying on for two years. It was only supposed to be a two semester project, but I stayed for two years and then I went on to receive my master's, um, started working in social work and was hired on to serve as the director of clinical services in 2007 at the children's receiving home.

In 2011, I decided I wanted to spread my wings and learn about adoption [00:07:00] because we were seeing a lot of kids that were adopted coming back into the system, coming back into the receiving home. And I wanted to see if I could be a part of a solution for that issue for our kids. And then in 2018, the CEO, after 23 years had wanted to retire.

So he asked me to come back to help him in his succession planning and his retirement. So I became CEO in June of 2020 in the midst of a global pandemic. And that's exactly when you wanna become a new CEO, right? We had 50 kids on our campus trying to get, keep them safe, keep the staff coming to work. It was quite the challenge, but I wouldn't have, I wouldn't change it for the world.

Jeff Holden: That's an amazing journey. That is truly a journey from internship. Yep. To CEO. Yeah. Well congratulations on the accomplishment too. Oh, thank you. 'cause that's not easy to do. Thank you. Let's talk a little bit about the programs. The services you currently provide? 'cause they've changed dramatically. Mm-hmm.

From obviously the [00:08:00] orientation to the mid cycle of the organization to where we are today. What is the scope of the programs that you offer for the children? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Well, we actually have quite a continuum of services that we do offer on our six acre campus. We still have our shelter program. It's now a 10 day model.

And we work with kids from Child Protective Services, Sacramento County, who are either in between placements are working their way to go home, are waiting for group home placements that are available. And so the idea is that's a really temporary stay for them. And we work with kids primarily 11 to 17 years of age.

Thank you. I was just about to ask the ages in that particular program, so we still have our shelter. We have a small residential treatment program. That works with kids who really need intensive mental health treatment services before they can live in a family. And so those kids stay with us between six months and two years.

They are typically kids struggling with depression, anxiety, suicidality, some really [00:09:00] intense trauma responses mm-hmm. For those kids. So we have the, those two housing programs on our campus. We then have what we call a partial hospitalization. Program, which is a day treatment program for kids living at home and they can come to our campus.

It's a five to 10 day program, and those kids we're trying to prevent hospitalization. So a lot of those kids are suffering from depression, anxiety, suicide attempts, and so we are a bridge for them to be able to stay with their families and get really intensive mental health treatment in a short period of time.

Jeff Holden: In terms of the programs, who identifies the child? To be appropriate for the program? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: It depends on the, the program for the shelter and the short term residential program. The, the county determines that. Okay. And they do the referrals for the partial hospitalization program? Parents can actually refer, if they have the proper insurance, they can, they can refer to that program.

Jeff Holden: Good. We can come back to the insurance. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Part 

Jeff Holden: of that too, a little bit [00:10:00] later. Yes. In the conversation. Yeah. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: And we actually have two other programs I wanna make sure to highlight. Yeah. 'cause we have our Sprouts trauma-informed preschool, and that's for our youngest survivors of abuse and neglect. Those are little ones, two to five years of age that some are foster children, some are not.

Some have just experienced pretty significant trauma in their life and they're not able to regulate themselves to be able to be in traditional preschool programs. Many have been kicked out of Headstart, which is hard for me to believe with these little. Guys. But they come to us for about a year and our goal is to get them ready to go to a traditional preschool or to kindergarten.

Um, oh, that's awesome. That program. Yeah. And the last one we have is we do have a community outreach program. It's a suicide prevention program that works with foster youth, former foster youth, L-G-B-T-Q youth to to help. With suicide prevention as well as how help housing, find housing. Mm-hmm. Um, work development and mental health services and such too.

So, so we do a whole continuum of, of service provision [00:11:00] within our organization. 

Jeff Holden: Glen's on the, on the Sprouts program. Mm-hmm. How do the. Children interface with the organization? Do they? They don't. Do they live there, are they? They don't live there. There. Okay, so it's like an outpatient? Yes, 

Glynis Butler-Stone: it's an outpatient thing.

Okay. Yeah. So yeah, so we have the two housing programs, which is our shelter and our residential treatment. Okay. And then the other programs are all outpatient. So kids come to the campus for service 

Jeff Holden: and the next logical question is going to be how do they get there and get back to where they come from.

Glynis Butler-Stone: Well, especially for the Sprouts, that's actually part of our, our contract is that we have a contract with Placer County Behavioral Health, and so our staff, our teachers actually transport the kids to and from preschool every day. 

Jeff Holden: And you mentioned Placer County. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yes. 

Jeff Holden: Yet obviously your Sacramento County.

What is the scope? What's the geography that you're servicing? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Well, we would love to be servicing Sacramento County children, but at this point in time, the funding that we have available is only through Placer County. Placer County came up with this idea of having a regional trauma-informed [00:12:00] preschool, and they were hoping that Sacramento County would jump on board.

Mm-hmm. Which they haven't as of yet. So we're hopeful in some of our reinvention we'll be able to serve Sacramento County kids in that program. And that 

Jeff Holden: just for this, for the Sprouts program? The REST program for the Sprouts program. The rest of the, is all Sacramento the, yes. Okay. Good. Yes. Good. Make make sure we clarify that.

Yeah, 

Glynis Butler-Stone: definitely. 

Jeff Holden: Amber, when you were there, what were the programs that were most significant to you as you recall? 

Amber Robbins: Well, I'll have to press preface this with. It was over a few decades ago, but I, what I will say that sticks out tremendously when as Glynis talks about and clearly I'm sure it was much different in the forties and I certainly wasn't around then.

However, as a child, from my purview, things look different, right? And there's, we often underestimate how intense. Trauma can be for children when they're coming out of a, a dangerous environment. And so you often live your life a bit in a fog, and so I felt very much in a fog the few times that I'd resided there short [00:13:00] term and a little bit longer.

Again, things have changed, right? It's longer than 10. It was longer than 10 days, way back when. But what I would say is much like the Sprout program, they have to now, when I was placed in the Sacramento Children's receiving home, there was shelter, there were shelter services for the younger kiddos before the Sprout.

Mm-hmm. Program. And that would've been about the age that I was there with my younger brother. Additionally, my older sister had experienced a couple of stays or short term quick visits while they found placement for us. But what I recall, one important thing to me, having been ripped from my mother's arms after extremely traumatizing events.

The, what the Sacramento Children's receiving home did for me so long ago. During one of those times, I did have the opportunity because of this immediate placement opportunity to be placed with my brother, and that was the, the Sacramento Children's Receiving [00:14:00] Home was, is what made that possible. They were able to hold us there.

Until they found someone or a family who was willing to take a sibling, set a sibling set. Now things are different now, right? The juvenile judicial system, they work much harder to keep siblings together, thankfully. But back then, that wasn't a focus and, and if you can imagine, again, being ripped from your family's home, you only have your siblings.

And so just being able to feel that I was able to be near, even though there was a. The girls' side and the boys' side, just to know that I was under the same roof as my brother. I felt like I could protect him, maybe even see him over over the walls every so often, or passing through to the, where the dining hall is.

Jeff Holden: This is a good point to actually identify what got you there, what happened and how did you end up there? Who was it that brought you there? Mm-hmm. And did you come with your brother at the same time? So. 

Amber Robbins: As a child. There [00:15:00] were, there were several instances in my childhood from really from the time I was an infant until I graduated from high school.

But definitely in those early years there were, my father had been involved in some pretty high profile crime. He certainly loved us. We had a as odd as the sound, we had a really loving family. Yeah. But what he was involved with posed great danger to my family. For that reason, my mother, as much as. She loved him.

She, we were oftentimes in situations where we were in protective custody. And so when people were after my father, when they found, when they located my mother's whereabouts and there was an attempt or several attempts to harm her, what was a bloody situation, and her ending up off in a gurney, my brother, sister and I would of course be left at the hands of.

Whatever first responder was there. And then in sometimes of course a [00:16:00] social worker. And so I would say the last time we were there, the first time we were there, I, I wanna say we were separated. My brother and I were separated, and that was incredibly traumatizing. Uh, there had also been other times where the receiving home was at capacity, unfortunately.

And so that meant that my brother and I at two 3:00 AM were, you know, well, we. Spent some time in, I wanna say a police station, a police office, until they did find a place for us. But it, that's pretty much how we ended up there. And as I got older, I remember it looked different, it smelled different. And there were, I understood the services different.

But again, back to the point of it, it's hard to measure the trauma and the long-term impacts that trauma has on children. The dedicated staff. That was certainly, it was hugely apparent to me as much as I did not wanna be there, as much as I [00:17:00] was worried about my mother, as much as I was worried about my siblings, there were these skilled staff members who I.

I imagine just like your wife and of course Glynis having volunteered there, they were there truly because they wanted to. They knew how to, they knew how to interact with traumatized children. They, they were delicate with their questions and even as terrible. And one of my biggest memories, one of my.

Strongest memories is that intake process, which is pretty brutal. But they found ways to make it less horrific for a child from a child who just witnessed their mom stabbed six 17 times, I think is what it was. Mm-hmm. But the staff is just remarkable. And then they found things, and I can't say that it took my mind off anything, but they found things to try to take your heartache for missing your mom from you, right?

Mm-hmm. There was, there were always games and. They would make time for individual therapies and, but that you also didn't feel so [00:18:00] much that you were different. You understood other children are going through something similar, right? And so even if it meant a week, two weeks, sometimes close to a month that you were under this.

Sealing with many other children. It, it was almost, in some cases back then a little bit better than being placed immediately in foster care. 'cause you didn't feel quite so quite like an alien, right? Mm-hmm. Families are going through things, children are going through things and so those card games you get to interact with people who may have had a bad night the night before as well.

They also had lots of, then, I didn't understand this, but now I understand it. But through arts and building, building bears and you know, the different crafts that they had, it was very much therapeutic. Mm-hmm. A lot of the things that they did for the children. That's about as much as I can speak on the programs then, because I didn't truly understand what was happening to me.

Sure. 

Jeff Holden: How, how old were you when you were there? 

Amber Robbins: I'm guessing, but I think the, there [00:19:00] was a time when I wasn't there with my brother, so I must have been under five and then I. I would guess about seven or so. My little brother was definitely about the age of two and then once more, a little bit older, perhaps 11.

So each time a child reifies with a parent, it almost sets you back. I hate to say, you find yourself a new dangers and then of course you no longer have that. Could have been a long-term foster care placement. And so the last time I, I was in the Sacramento Children's receiving home. I wanna say perhaps I was about 11 or so.

Okay. And that was, to your point, the Placer County opportunity, which would be so amazing if you get the funding for that. But when I was, my sister, brother and I were all. They call 'em Sac County Kids. You probably still call 'em that, still call 'em that. Um, but because of the high level of care that my sister, who unfortunately had a lot more trauma, [00:20:00] she experienced a lot more than we do.

Did being the older sister. She was moved to Placer County and my brother was able. To follow her, and because they were placed as S County kids in Placer County, I had the opportunity to also move to Placer County, and still, because I was still a Sac County kid, still receive services from Sacramento County.

Because you were so well versed in those therapies and have been doing it for so long. 

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. 

Did you think at that as, as best you can recollect. Did it give you a sense of security, safety? Did you feel okay, this environment's good. It's better than where I was. 

Amber Robbins: Well, I would be lying if I said I didn't hate it.

I hated every second of. 

Scott Thomas: Being away from your parents life 

Amber Robbins: at that moment. But what I will say, and now as an adult, having these beautiful, amazing full circle opportunities through a partnership with the Sacramento Children's receiving Home, the last time I did a tour of the Sacramento Children's [00:21:00] receiving home, I was blown away by how different it looked, right?

Mm-hmm. What started with that initial building that I remember and this, this just. Open grassy area with a playground and you could see where the boys played, where the girls played. But all you could see is fence. And I don't know if you remember at our ribbon cutting meet saying this. Yeah. It was beautiful to see how much it had grown as a result of our, the partnership with homemade Sacramento and the children's receiving home.

But what was, what stopped my heart a little bit was I remember. As much as I hated to be there. Mm-hmm. Because of what was happening in my home, in my heart is what was once chain link fence. And I remember looking. Onto the freeway. It was a clear shot of the freeway. Mm-hmm. And how just so aware that everyone on the other side of that fence is so free and no one's holding me back.

When you go awol, you go awol. They cannot come back for you. And I mentioned this to [00:22:00] Glenys, as much as I did not wanna be there and I wanted to be with my mom. I would never leave because I felt safe for the first time in a long time. And so as an adult I realized that I felt incredibly safe there. The dining hall, for example, all these little moments that gave me a sense of security and a sense of I wouldn't, home is a challenging word to use in any sense when you're going through that, but you, you did feel a sense of home or just safety truly is the, the most important word here.

But when we went back, when we visited. Once more for the ribbon cutting. That was all blocked off by these incredible buildings that were now there and provided shelter and services to more now almost 80,000 youth. So that was quite special to me. One other thing, and I hate to go on and on about this, but you mentioned in the forties it was the original intent was to provide shelter during the World War I.

And when you use that word war, I just think of the war that is happening in some [00:23:00] homes or in the. Minds of children. So it's still in a sense mm-hmm. To me represents mm-hmm. 

Jeff Holden: Yeah. 

Amber Robbins: You know, shelter or respite from someone's war, especially for children. 

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. No, that's is very good. And I, I can imagine. If you feel somewhat captive, you're looking out at that fence going just on the other side of the fence.

Now that you don't see that, it doesn't feel the same, I would imagine for the people that are, you know, the children that are there. 'cause you're looking across at other children mm-hmm. In other mm-hmm. Rooms. Yes. Doing something that children would do, or whether it's a playground or whatever that activity is that is taking place.

Glenys talk about the residences because mm-hmm. The facility, six and a half acres, there's a lot of housing there for children. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yes. 

Jeff Holden: How many rooms is it again? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Well, we could house a hundred kids, so that would be a two to a bedroom. Yep. So that would do the math. I guess it's 50. Yeah. Bedrooms. So, but currently we're not utilizing it because of a number of changes to, to government and, and regulations.

But, but yes, we [00:24:00] have the ability, we could house a hundred individuals on our campus. So the capacity 

Jeff Holden: is there and the capacity is still there. You mentioned a couple times when you, you couldn't get in because they were full. 

Mm-hmm. 

And I know that that. Demand for that service has not minimized, if anything.

I mean, the population's grown things are different. Mm-hmm. I would imagine that the demand is there probably in a greater need, you know, in a greater way. So if at this point in time those rooms are vacant, you can take 16 children maximum at this point in time by law. 

Right. 

Where are they all going?

What's happening to these children? Yeah. A lot of, where do they go? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yeah. A lot of the, the kids are going outta state. To be fair. There's also been, part of the legislation has been to create more supports for families. So there are more supports for caregivers and relatives now, because I know when I first started my journey and my work, when Amber talks about how the kids had to be placed by boys and girls, they also didn't [00:25:00] give the.

The services to say grandparents or aunts and uncles mm-hmm. That they do now. So the legislation has changed so that more kids are actually going to family members than they ever have been in the past. So that part of it was the good part of, of the legislation that's, well, it's ing hear that they are going to Yeah.

Some someplace. So, yeah. 'cause I would work with grandparents that would want their, their grandkids, but they couldn't afford the housing, they couldn't afford the supports and the food and all of that. Now, under this new legislation, they, they receive the same exact supports that foster parents receive so they can get the proper housing and such.

So I would say yes, kids are going outta state, but they're also going to families. There are a lot more, more kids going to families, but there's still a need and there's still a need for I'm sure group care. And when you talk about a continuum of care, that means you have every level of care. Everything from families to group care, and we all, none of us want kids to grow up in group care, but there's always a place for it when kids aren't ready to be in families or families aren't ready for the kids to be at home.

So again, as a continuum, that's my soapbox as a continuum. [00:26:00] Mm-hmm. You need to be able to offer all of those Sure. Services. 

Jeff Holden: Well, and the other part of it, and Amber, you're a great testament to it. You came through the programs. At the children's receiving home, if that child is sent to a family member, they're not trained, you know, they're not educated in all these programs.

And the capacity that they've got to deal with that child who is traumatized is simply, you know, the love and care of a family member. Right. Which is good, but it's not everything else. Mm-hmm. And so I think that's something we have to consider as well. And if be 

Amber Robbins: destructive I'm Pardon? Go ahead. For the family 

Jeff Holden: as well.

Yes. 

Amber Robbins: Right, right. Yeah, 

Jeff Holden: yeah. Could com completely, you know, be overwhelming to a family even though they're getting paid for it. Mm-hmm. And they have some compensation to support the extra, you know, child mm-hmm. Or two that are in that situation. That isn't serving the child. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yeah. They are also offered training, but they have to accept it.

So they do offer the training and resources for them. Well, thank you for that as well. Yes. And does, 

Jeff Holden: does [00:27:00] training, do you do any training as part of the children's receiving home for those families that are recipients of family members, children's for children? We don't 

Glynis Butler-Stone: currently, but it's one of the areas we would love to expand into.

If there was funding, perhaps. Yes. Yes, exactly. 

Jeff Holden: Oh, we're gonna get to that too in just a second because this is, this is the crux of the conversation, right? Mm-hmm. We'll return to our conversation with Glynis Butler, stone of the Children's Receiving Home and Amber Robbins right after these messages from those making this program possible.

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Scott Thomas: Hello, this is Scott Thomas with CAPTRUST in our Sacramento office. I specialize in working with local nonprofits and associations annually. We survey private and public nonprofit organizations across the country to better understand challenges they see in today's environment.

In our more recent survey, we heard concerns about proper board governance, mission aligned investment, and how to implement alternative investments. If you would like a copy of the survey or to discuss your organization, look me up, [00:29:00] scottThomas@captrust.com. At Western Health Advantage. Healthcare 

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Collaboration. This entity, [00:30:00] especially after 80 years, doesn't operate in a vacuum. Who are some of the organizations that you find yourself collaborating often with? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: We actually collaborate with a lot of our sister agencies that are foster family agencies, a lot of mental health treatment programs, domestic violence programs, and in fact, thanks to the Sacramento Region Community Foundation, we are leading a collaborative effort with a group of nine local nonprofits that span everything from healthcare to mental health, to foster care, to really look at the gaps that we have in our service.

Provision and, and fill those gaps at the same time that we're looking to reinvent our campus because times have changed and funding has changed. 

Jeff Holden: Well, and we're sitting across from a collaborator right here. Yes. As the executive director of homemade. I know that you've been involved as well with a lot of the activity at the Children's receiving home.

Amber Robbins: Absolutely. Talk about full circle. Yes. Right. Bringing my experience in the building industry now to something that I love and also understand [00:31:00] the dire need for, it's been truly the greatest joy of my life. To be able to, in some way, give back, way back when as I, I talk about the, the traumatizing experiences and all those, that life experience I had.

I, one of the things I think back to. Is my complete lack of awareness that anyone cared at all or that there were helpers, right? There were people who worked at a group home or who worked at a receiving home and provided, again, you're just kind of working in autopilot. But you mentioned the couple of years that you volunteered in the, in the Point store, I remember that point store so vividly and how special it was, and it seemed much bigger there.

But again, knowing now, exercise. Through. Right, exactly. Knowing now through our partnership how many people contribute as volunteers, it's, it really is, it's heartwarming to me and I, I hope children now understand that there are so many helpers out there, but now as an adult, to be able to [00:32:00] use my experience both professionally but also personally in my own life, to help increase the capacity for them to serve in some way, whether it be by additional.

Beds and, and rooms, but even the facilities, the gymnasium, to me that is the most special thing, and that makes me proud to go home to my kids after mm-hmm. Spending hours away from them when I could tell them that I'm doing something great and I'm partnering with someone who provided respite when I was going through a storm.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. In terms of that collaborative part, I mean, that is part of this conversation too, is to draw some awareness because people just don't know. 

You know, they 

hear about it and they think it's good and they appreciate what happens at the children's receiving home. They don't realize that there's 70 plus beds vacant every night, and it's.

Not an accident. It is by law. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Right. 

Jeff Holden: So let's get into that part of the conversation. 'cause truly that's the, the funding element of what's happened here. Mm-hmm. And the funding changed and the requirements and [00:33:00] the capabilities of what you can do. Changed and that was by law. So tell us a little bit about that and then we'll talk about the dollars and cents.

Right, 

Glynis Butler-Stone: right. There was, uh, several pieces of legislation, one at the federal level mm-hmm. For campus based programs that have housing for children, and that is the one that has now limited us to being able to serve 16 children. Yes. One six in on our facility. And it's caused a number of our programs across the state to close.

Because that's just not a sustainable number. Mm-hmm. Then there's also been the statewide legislative changes we talked about briefly. Mm-hmm. Moving more money into preservation, moving more money into us, giving money to families, families, and moving away from congregate care. Sadly, group care has been villainized over the years, and there's a number of national groups that are working to close group care nationally, and there are some programs that should be closed, but not in California.

California has been so well regulated and. So well managed. And so it, you don't have the abuse and the trauma and the childhood deaths and such that [00:34:00] you do in other states. Mm-hmm. So, so those pieces of legislation have affected us to the point that we're now looking to reinvent our campus because we do have a six acre campus.

We were built to house a hundred kids or a hundred people. Mm-hmm. Many of the buildings are sitting dormant. Some are being used as offices. But we here, we have a housing crisis and we have, we have housing 70 some places for housing. We have housing, which is. Yeah. Yeah. And so that's why we're, we're looking at reinventing ourselves we're, we don't see much change in the landscape politically.

There's no will to go back to shelters other than very small ones. There's no will to have kids living in group care at the national level over the state level. And so it's like, okay, we are a resilient organization and we've been nimble over the years, so now's our time to, let's look at what, what else, where are the gaps?

Where else can we. Potentially provide housing. And one area that we have identified is for transition aged youth, which are youth eight. I call 'em kids. They're not kids, they're 18. It's a hard habit. 18 to [00:35:00] 24 year olds. 

Jeff Holden: Yeah. Maybe in emancipation they have to go someplace. They need someplace to go. And 

Glynis Butler-Stone: so Senator Ashby got this legislation so that all foster youth have funds to go to college, and now they're sleeping in their cars.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: So we really need to be looking at that housing and can the receiving home pivot still keeping our shelter, but maybe be able to serve transition age youth also that needs housing 

Jeff Holden: as as one option. And then for anybody else as, as we look at these other organizations that have need for short, short term housing.

Mm-hmm. You know, recovered victims of domestic violence, recovered victims mm-hmm. From sex trafficking. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Whatever it may be. Mm-hmm. There seems to be an opportunity to fulfill. A need. Yes. It's there. It's just gotta put the right pieces together to be identified and then funded. And that that funding is out there for the funding is we're seeing in so many different places.

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yes. Yeah. That's the issue is the funding. 

Jeff Holden: Let's talk about the budget a bit. What, what is the operating budget for the organization? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Currently, [00:36:00] it's right around $9 million. 

Jeff Holden: Okay, and what was it historically? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: It's been as high as 15 million. Okay. Yeah. 

Jeff Holden: Okay. In the past, and so you've, you've got these 70, additional, 74 additional rooms or whatever that, that's a lot of maintenance and operational expense, just Yes.

To keep the doors opened. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yes. It's about $2 million a year just to keep the lights on. 

Jeff Holden: Okay. And that's 

Glynis Butler-Stone: without anything breaking. 

Jeff Holden: Yeah. I'm not talking about staff. Right. And if I'm not mistaken, it's not talking 

Glynis Butler-Stone: staff. No. It's all getting 

Jeff Holden: 20 plus years old or whatever that was when I first met my wife there.

Yes, yes. When it was being built. Yes. So as we look at that and we look at the funding situation, what are. Some of the elements of that funding that you see today as the most opportunistic. In other words, where, where could that money come from? Is it sitting in a, in a state pool? Is federal money, probably not at all, but is it within other organizations?

Is it a fee for service? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Well, [00:37:00] we've long relied on contracts and contracts with Sacramento County and they have. Been very good to us. But the reality is that then they set the need and then they put it out to bid for providers to bid on the contracts. And so then when the contracts go away, they're gone.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: So what we're trying to do is really expand and look at engagement with corporations, with foundations, with individual donors who wanna be part of the safety net for kids and wanna be part of filling these gaps that we know are there. Mm-hmm. We know kids are sleeping on the streets. We know they're.

Sleeping in cars, you know, how can we help with this? Hi housing crisis for our kids. So really calling on the community and corporations, foundations, and donors. 

Amber Robbins: And if I may, if you can only imagine the opportunity through private funding to move the needle a bit. More quickly, but then also just the so, so much less strings attached, right?

You could do more in a quicker amount of time, but [00:38:00] then also sustainability, right? Mm-hmm. You're not bound by contracts and change. If you, if you and I come from insure, I might be partial. I come from the most philanthropic industry there is. I certainly know there are other industries that are philanthropic.

But we pride ourselves in our access to private funding and, uh, the sustainability there. This is such a generous community and there are mutual benefits 

Jeff Holden: mm-hmm. 

Amber Robbins: In giving in this way, not only in our, for the building industry, for example, whether you, and this really important man in my industry taught me this, whether you purchase a piece of land and.

Anticipate building a year, 10 years, or a hundred years from now, you're still invested in that land, right? Mm-hmm. This is your community. You can't sell homes. You can't do business if you're not preserving the health and safety of your community. 

Jeff Holden: And it starts with children because children become the community as they grow.

Mm-hmm. 

Amber Robbins: Right. Well, and you hit on the transition age, foster youth. I'm so passionate about all children, but the opportunity with this age group, right? Mm-hmm. [00:39:00] If I, I think his name is Josh Ship. If you ever get the opportunity to, and I'm probably butchering his name, but to watch his, he has this speech and he, there, there's, he uses a jar of marbles to describe.

Age, right? Each marble represents an age in a child's life. And as that child ages, there's so much less room left in that jar. For this age group, you have just moments, you know, this is like a second opportunity to get through to this age group before they emancipate or age outta the foster care system with no one to fall back on, right?

And so the opportunity to provide services to these individuals and make them available to them, that is like. Gold. Mm-hmm. That is gold to our community, that is helping not only to keep them out of the adult system of care, but helping to keep them from having children back in our children's system of care.

And the more we look at addressing these issues in that regard, in the long, with the long term in our mind and. Considering the continuum of care. That to me, is [00:40:00] this just this amazing sweet spot and opportunity that if we overlook shame on us, right? It's right there in front of us. 

Jeff Holden: Well, that's our future generations.

Mm-hmm. We, we have to address it. 

Mm-hmm. 

So this, this is mm-hmm. A pivotal part of the conversation. I'm gonna give you an opportunity to dream a little bit now. 

Okay. 

So everything's great. Somebody says, we love what you're doing. We see the opportunity, glenys, we've got a blank check for you. What do you do with it?

What's it look like? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Well, I envision our six acres being vibrant and active, serving children, serving families, being like a hub of supports and services. Have our housing components as well as our mental health. Our outpatient components, um, you talked about like parenting classes, parenting support groups.

Mm-hmm. We've also been envisioning what's called the Life Academy for young adults so that they have a place to come and learn about, you know, besides financial literacy and how to, you know, [00:41:00] how to do laundry and, you know, all those things that a lot of kids that don't have. Parents growing up or don't get that support need, how to clean a toilet.

You know, how to boil a pot of water. How to, I'm not kidding. Yeah. How to cook, how to, you know, what do you buy at the grocery store? Mm-hmm. All of those kinds of things, so, so that would be my vision is to really have this robust hub of services and vibrant that could be welcoming to all aspects of the community.

Like 

Jeff Holden: a life training. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yes. Resource. Yes. This 

Jeff Holden: is what you need to do. Yeah. Because truly so many. Children don't ever learn that. Right. Because they don't learn it from their parents 'cause their parents aren't doing it. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Mm-hmm. Yeah. 

Jeff Holden: And it's just the basics, the necessities of life. Yeah. What you need to do.

Yeah. You have to clean up every so often. You have to run that vacuum cleaner. You have to do the dishes. You're not gonna have a dishwasher to start, probably. Yeah. And there's 

Amber Robbins: dignity and responsibility 

Jeff Holden: truly. 

Amber Robbins: Yes, 

Jeff Holden: and I think that's part of what I was hearing from the conversation, not only for the families, but for the children.

There's a sense of dignity that you want to instill so that it's [00:42:00] not this shroud of, oh my gosh, I was in a receiving home. I mean, Amber, I applaud you for being here because as an alumna of the receiving home, you know, some people may not wanna address it. Mm-hmm. You know, I was there, that was a bad time in my life.

Mm-hmm. But clearly something good came out of it, 

Amber Robbins: and I'm glad, I'm glad you mentioned that because one thing I didn't mention, and I've shared with you quite a bit, and now that I am more vocal with my story because I recognize that it actually helps people I spent most of my life in, in foster care, keeping it a secret, right?

If someone asked, who are those? People who look very different from you, much older, who are all family friends, there is such an intense feeling of shame and embarrassment, right? As a, a young child, it was more shame and just trying to be good and walk on eggshells and not become even more burdensome on others than you already are.

But then that. Eventually it develops into a pretty [00:43:00] intense feeling of embarrassment. And now as an adult, I can recognize that as I share my story. And you know, now that I have children of my own especially, I would be so saddened if they felt shame for anything that the adults in their life through letting them down, put them through.

But just that shame alone. When you talk about this, and you've mentioned to me your dream in different words, but in those words you just described. That sounds like such a beautiful place for someone who has experienced trauma and who might otherwise be, have feelings of shame, right? To be around other people who are also struggling or overcoming some intense struggle just to be around services with people who know what they're going through, who've gone through things that they've gone through.

That sounds like the most healing and dignified environment. Pray that that happens soon for you. Thank you. 

Jeff Holden: Which leads us perfectly to the next question of what is the greatest need, and I [00:44:00] think I can answer that, but I'm gonna have you explain it because we just spent the last 20, 25 minutes talking about it.

Yes, yes. So let's put it out there. As the ask. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yes. I mean, 

Jeff Holden: the reality of where we are today to what needs to be done. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yeah. The the reality is we need funding. 

Jeff Holden: Yes. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: And the reality is that we need the community to come forward and we need to find private funding, grants, private donors, corporations to that will be able to fund the bridge right now because it takes money.

Mm-hmm. To be able to reinvent the campus, to bring new programs. It's going to take. Funding to be able to hire additional leadership to be able to have adequate qualified staffing and pay them properly, which that's always been an issue for us in not the nonprofit world, provide training. So, so yes, we're really looking for funding to be able to, to bridge, to build these programs and to build this hub on our campus again.

Jeff Holden: Is there a capital campaign that's in place or being put in place at some point in in the future? It's more 

Glynis Butler-Stone: of a fundraising [00:45:00] campaign. Got it. Than a capital campaign at this point. So yes, this particular year we are looking to raise one and a half million dollars. Okay. And that's going to give us the bridge funding to be able to work in this collaboration of these nine different nonprofits to really reinvent our campus and look at what the gaps are in service provision so that we can.

Continuing to provide the care that the kids need in our community. 

Jeff Holden: And that'll take us, that's anticipated through 2026 into, yeah. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yeah. 

Jeff Holden: Okay. Yes. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yeah, that'll get us into 2026. 

Jeff Holden: Excellent. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yes. 

Jeff Holden: So I'm gonna ask you a personal question now, because as you know, the executive director of an organization that is going through all these organizations, anything that's servicing children or food insecurity or, or mental health or, or foster youth.

All of you have this, this weight on your shoulders that never goes away. You think about it all the time and you think about how can I help? What can I do differently? So and so just came in and I know that, [00:46:00] that child now, and, and, and you carry it with you all the time. How do you, I. Get away from it for a break.

What do you do to, to unstress for a second? De-stress. Yeah. You just, 

Glynis Butler-Stone: well, I have to say honestly, I don't think I ever stop thinking about the work and, and the receiving home. Mm-hmm. And really what's happening with the kids and, and our funding and our sustainability. So I can't say I completely disconnect, but if I wanna fill up my cup, then I love to dance.

And so any particular type. Um, well, I tap dance for one. You're kidding. No. Amazing. Did you know this? That's amazing. I did not know that. This is amazing. Shoot, I wish we had a board in here. We'd have you do a little 

Jeff Holden: tap. We'd have you do something. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: And I love Zumba and aerobics and any kind of movement.

So I mean, that's really what fills my cup. If I want a more quiet moment this last year, it's the best thing I would highly recommend it is we put in a water feature in our backyard and it's this little babbling in Brook. My husband always wanted one like that and I thought, well, this is silly. It's the coolest thing.

I can go out there and just sit and [00:47:00] it's so calming. Yeah, it's an incredible, so that's where I do a lot of my thinking, is sitting by my. My little babbling brook. 

Jeff Holden: Well, now I have a much better understanding of why things are going so well in this process is because you know how to tamp Dad, 

Glynis Butler-Stone: I 

Jeff Holden: do. You tamp dancing all the way through every bit of funding and discussions and collaborative.

We'll have to get a little more of that somewhere along the line. At some point in time, we're gonna get to, maybe 

Amber Robbins: when you raise that $1.5 million, there's a conscious state that'ss exactly 

Jeff Holden: what's gonna happen. That's exactly what's going to happen. The next question is really just about what. One can do.

Where do we go? Where's the best place to find the information? To learn a little bit more about the organization? About the need. Yeah. The opportunity to give. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yeah. So the best place to go is to our website. 

Jeff Holden: Okay. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Which is CH kids.org. 

Jeff Holden: And we'll put that in the show notes as well to make it simple. Yeah. So 

Glynis Butler-Stone: that has all the information about us, how you can give what we need, and, and that's the, [00:48:00] that's the best spot to go.

Jeff Holden: And that's easy. That's easy. I love that. 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Yes. I love that. Yeah. 

Jeff Holden: How about any closing thoughts? 

Glynis Butler-Stone: Well, in, in thinking about doing this podcast, I really wanna thank you for the opportunity and thank you, Amber, for joining me. Um, this means a lot to me, more than you probably will ever know. Well, thank you for having me.

Yeah. So I just wanna share that there's so many kids out there that need us and there's still kids that we could be serving. And in our 80 year history, what we've been doing this last year is really embracing our legacy and we've been really embracing our name. And so to receive means, to accept means to welcome.

It means to bear the weight, and we really, without community support, are not gonna be able to continue to receive children without our community coming together. And we really wanna be able to give kids the opportunity to heal, to find hope, and to become all the greatness that they can be. 

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. Amber, 

Glynis Butler-Stone: how do you [00:49:00] follow that?

Well, 

Jeff Holden: you, you are, she's, she's, our 

Amber Robbins: greatness are that she's our greatness. My closing thought would just be to think again when I was sitting in those shoes so many years ago, not knowing that there were people who cared it, it truly is. I'm, I'm grateful to you for. To your point, Jeff, the emotional toll that it takes on you.

I think each of us are created differently, and some of our hearts are so big that it's, there's a, it's a double edged, you know? Mm-hmm. There, there's. Greatness that comes with it, but also you have to learn how to hurt quite deeply. And so that level of pain is certainly while it's worth the amount of love that you're able to give children and the world, I, I just want to thank you and your staff and anyone else, donors who are willing to carry that burden of pain so that children don't have to feel like a burden, right?

Mm-hmm. And so I just thank you is the only word that comes to my mind. 

Jeff Holden: And I'm about to do the same thing. So I opened with [00:50:00] a personal story and relationship to this treasured, valued, and very necessary community for our children that was different from the stories we just heard in the conversation.

The true value is much deeper than the fondness for me because it exists in a different way and it's much more impactful than most could ever comprehend. Amber, you more so than anybody else in the room. I look at you today and what a compliment you are to the children's receiving home as a product of somebody who has gone through that and has elevated themselves into the community to give back.

Through another nonprofit organization. I mean that's, that's amazing. 

Amber Robbins: Thank you. 

Jeff Holden: And Glenys for what you and the team and the staff and everybody involved in the children's receiving home, I mean, for the many years that you've been involved with it 

Glynis Butler-Stone: mm-hmm. Is 

Jeff Holden: just incredible. So thank you for what you do as well.

Glynis Butler-Stone: Thank you. You are welcome. 

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