Making an impact on others becomes priority
Impacting lives is something that Bill Halle of Butler has learned to do very well. He is founder and CEO of Grace Youth and Family Foundation in Butler, which provides programs for youth with at-risk behaviors.
Halle, 45, has never had to recover from a substance use disorder, but he may never recover from the trauma he has suffered because of one drinking weekend and some bad choices he made at age 17.
"After a long week of football practice, a couple of buddies and I decided to go boating and inner-tubing at Bradys Bend. We were drinking and driving the boat as fast as we could to see how bad the wipeout would be for whoever was being pulled on the inner-tube."
The other guys went first, but by the time it was Halle's turn, another boat was nearing and created a situation which threw Halle into its path. He hurt his back.
Halle, an A student and all-around athlete, didn't realize the seriousness of the injury until he found himself motionless on the ground at football practice the next day. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was told the last four bones in his back were broken.
"It ended my competitive athletic career. My whole life was sports and it changed my plans for college, everything. I lost my identity."
After the accident, Halle began to look at the big questions: "Why did this happen? What is my purpose?"
Eventually he became a mentor to 10-year-old boys in a program at his church, and even at 18, seemed to be able to reach the child that no one else could.
Soon after graduation, he met the girl he would someday marry. While dating, she became pregnant, and Halle said he went from "Mr. Potential to someone who was worthless," in the eyes of those who once admired him.
His experience helped him relate to other youths who had been pushed aside because of bad choices or who didn't have the resources that others had.
In an effort to reach out to such youths, Halle started a Friday night volleyball game that included a 15-minute Bible lesson. The weekly event drew 70 to 80 participants seeking a place to belong.
After traditional and online classes, he obtained a pastor certificate and at the same time had started a financial business.
"One day, while sitting in a meeting making million dollar decisions, I found myself worrying about little Johnny on the team," he said. "I went home and told my wife I was quitting to work full time with the kids."
In 1993, he founded Grace Youth and Family Foundation in Beaver County. In 1994 he moved to Butler, where he ministers to youths and their families at the Net Outreach on Center Avenue and at other locations.
The foundation recently re-opened a drug and alcohol- free coffee shop for teens. The shop had been closed for renovation, but drew 80 to 100 teens on a Saturday night when it was open, Halle said.
"We have 750 teens in our database," he said. "Our goal is to provide programming revenue for adolescents," he added, noting government funding is more widely available to those in early childhood or young adulthood, but not for teens.
Also reopening for the school year is Transitions High School, also on Center Avenue. Halle calls it an alternative education program for those in grades nine through 12 who are at risk for or recovering from substance misuse. It is one of only 24 such schools in the country.The school gets about 18 referrals each year, of which about 10 students remain enrolled. Some come for a period of time then transition back into the normal population, Halle said."We make recovery a part of the curriculum. We have everything from remedial to college level classes: the full gamut of educational capability."The school is in session from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. 180 days a year. It combines cyber education with classes taught by a certified master level teacher.Transitions High School was the brainchild of Deb Hall, guidance counselor at Butler High School and a prevention specialist since 1986."Seven years ago in the spring, we knew what was going on with heroin and the young people here in Butler and across our nation," said Hall. She gathered school superintendents and community organizations to talk about goals."My ivory tower idea was to have a recovery high school for Butler. Then the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation said there was grant money available in May, and by November we opened. We ran on grant money for two years but by the third year we had to charge," said Hall.Halle admits that without the support of The Butler School District, the school would not exist. The district purchases multiple slots for students each year.Because Halle's programs are faith-based and self-sufficient, he feels the foundation is more accountable and more successful."We do what works because we don't have a singular funding stream. We don't have an outsider saying we can't do what works - or that the grant money doesn't provide for that."He said he has 40 volunteers and 16 fee-for-service staff members who love what they do and have a calling to work for the foundation."We know a lot and do well and God blesses us. We're small, but we have a big impact."
