In the words of outgoing Samaritan Board President Gary Cebulski:

Three years ago, if you would have told me that I’d be attending an Appleton Rotary Club meeting, viewing a panel of chief executives discussing questions on ethics, as an extension of a Samaritan-sponsored “Ethics In Business Summit”, I would have considered that the gold standard for what I envisioned would happen with the Summit.

Three years ago, if you would have told me that the Superintendent of Public Instruction for the state of Wisconsin would be scheduled to visit the Hortonville Area School District in January 2017 to review the impact of HASD’s “E3” program – a program in which Samaritan provides wellness screening for teens in school in collaboration with other agencies – as an example of what is possible with a wide-ranging wellness screen program, I would have considered that the gold standard for what I would have thought was possible for Samaritan’s Wellness Screen program.

Three years ago, if you would have told me that Samaritan would take the lead on expanding bilingual mental health counseling services in the Fox Cities, establishing an advocacy and training program to support such services, I would have considered that a breakthrough program for Samaritan.

Three years ago, if you would have told me that Samaritan would be considered a “model agency” in an initiative that the majority of Fox Cities’ non-profit agencies are participating in (the POINT initiative), I would have said, quoting a popular commercial from the 1960’s, “we’ve come a long way, baby”.

As I complete my third and final year as Board President, I’m amazed at the progress the Samaritan has made. It is all due to the consistent, tireless efforts of the Samaritan staff and the contributions of so many dedicated volunteers and board members. And what I am most excited about is the heightened awareness of Samaritan in our community, and the quality of the people that are joining Samaritan’s efforts through board participation and volunteering.

I cannot think of a more exciting time to be connected with the Samaritan, and I am excited to see where it all goes from here. THANKS to all of you for your dedicated efforts to support Samaritan and advocate for strong mental health counseling in this community!

Note: Gary Cebulski served as Samaritan’s board president from approximately January 2013- December 2016.