Dear A.L.E., My son Michael graduated your program in Feb. 2012 and I'm writing to share my experience with you as well as any other families you might like to share this with.

After years of avoiding what needed to be done we made the difficult decision to send Michael to ALE. For me, a wilderness program was something I had heard about and read about, but never thought that it was something for a boy from a middle class family from Long Island. I am not going to bother sharing our war stories with you because if you are reading this, I am sure your stories are quite similar to ours. Truancy, drugs, defiance and false promises are all part of what got us to A.L.E.

I made the call on a Thursday and by Friday at 4:00am there were two men at our door ready to escort Michael to what would be his new home for the next 59 days. Having an escort service pick Michael up was absolutely the best decision we could have made. The men came into our home, sat with us for about ten minutes and then we all went into Michael's room to tell him what was going to happen. The men were firm yet kind and after a few minutes Mike knew he was not going to be able to talk his way out of this one. With lots of tears and hugs Michael was on his way with nothing but the clothes on his back. On the trip up to Saranack the men called us twice letting us know how Mike was doing. They gave us their cell phone numbers in case we had any questions and basically made us feel very comfortable that we had made the right decision to use an escort service to get our son to A.L.E. safely. Once Mike arrived we began to get updates as often as we wanted. Our first contact was with Patrick who gave us his cell phone and told us to call as often and at any hour we wanted. After a couple of days, I am sure he wished he had not made that offer. Eventually all our concerns and questions were addressed by Mike's therapist Patricia. The first few days were very difficult. A couple of times I was ready to come get my son, he was not eating and whatever he did get down he threw right back up. The team at ALE kept me calm and were always available to listen. As Mike's letters began to be posted it was interesting to see how he went from desperation to understanding to finally acceptance of where he was and what he needed to do to graduate. Our therapist Trish had more insight into what made Mike tick in a few short days than any therapist we had dealt with in the past. I had a love hate relationship with her. I hated that she would not tell me what I wanted to hear, that everything was going to be ok and that there was nothing to worry about; I loved the fact that she was tough, honest and called me out on stuff that no one ever had in the past. That is why I say "our" therapist because even though she was there for Mike she helped me understand who I was and what role I was playing in Mike's life like no one had before. As the last few weeks approached, I began to feel anxious as to what would be best for Mike and the family once he graduated. ALE was very helpful in guiding us to decide on the next step in Mike's recovery. We arrived for graduation on a Tuesday morning and spent a good part of the day with Trish and other staff members who prepared us for not only life after ALE, but for what our visit was going to be like. We were going to be living for the next 24 hours in the same environment Mike had been in for the last 59 days. I am not going to share with you what that experience is like, but I will tell you it is hard, it is real, and it is humbling and I am so happy I did it. Without this experience, I could not have appreciated what Mike and the other kids daily routines were like. At no time did I feel the kids were ever in danger. To think our kids went through this for as much as two months and I was barely able to do twenty four hours is remarkable. I am so proud of my son and the other kids I met who are going through this program.

For the first time in his life Mike is proud of himself for being able to complete something. My son looks great, has never felt better and has matured more in the last two months then he had in the last ten years. When Mike left for ALE he had given up on life and I had given up on him. When he came out, he had a glow in his eyes and a smile on his face that was worth every penny and tear I had shed over the last two months. You are a dedicated and professional team that works miracles. A.L.E., thank you for taking our broken child and making him whole again.

Sincerely,

Kenny

Sending our 16 year-old daughter away to Aspen's Adirondack Leadership Expeditions (ALE) program to live in the woods for 9 weeks last summer was the hardest thing we ever had to do as parents, but we were desperate to get her to a safe place where she would finally start getting the help she needed to heal emotionally. We were afraid for her in so many ways, but didn't even know the extent of her behavioral and emotional issues because she had closed herself off from us so completely by that point and was full of anger and hate; we couldn't even communicate with her, let alone get her to cooperate with a therapist or psychiatrist.

Although it was so hard not being able to speak with our daughter while she was at ALE, our weekly phone conferences with her therapist were extremely helpful and encouraging. After a few weeks of continued anger, our daughter finally started to open up and share some of her hurts and experiences with her therapist, and with us through letters. We wrote to our daughter every week as well, to let her know how much we loved and cared for her and to explain our concerns and reasons for taking such an extreme measure to help her.

This past year has been the most challenging one of her life, and ours as well. However, our daughter would be the first to testify to her remarkable growth in that time. She would tell you with pride how tough she had to be – physically, mentally and emotionally – to live in the woods for 9 weeks. Her self-confidence and self-esteem grew dramatically, and she bonded with the other girls in her group. They came to look at her as a leader and example of how much a person can change in positive ways.

Our daughter is coming home to us as a much more mature, self-aware, self-assured and skilled young woman. We have come to understand each other and learned to communicate effectively as a family. We have re-built trust and loving relationships within our family. Without all the highly skilled professional support we have received for our daughter, we fear she would have been lost to us forever. Because of those programs and God's amazing grace, our daughter has been transformed and our family has been restored. We are forever grateful.