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Law firm lends a helping hand

August 2, 2007 article written by Tess Nacelewicz, staff writer for the Portland Press Herald, for the Your Neighbors section serving Gorham, Windham, Gray, Bridgton and other communities of the Lakes Region, Maine.

About 45 lawyers and other staff from one of Maine's leading law firms put their legal expertise on hold one day last week to wield paint brushes and pull weeds at a house in Windham.

Having employees of the Portland-based law firm of Pierce Atwood help out at the Crossroads for Women residential treatment facility for women with substance abuse problems was an ideal match for both organizations, said spokeswomen for the firm and the facility.

Pierce Atwood is a leader in Maine in terms of educating members of the legal profession about the negative consequences of lawyers and judges abusing alcohol and drugs, and helping those in the profession with problems get treatment, according to Jennifer Whittier, director of marketing and client relations for the firm.

"There's a connection there with Crossroads," Whittier said.

Crossroads for Women is a Portland-based nonprofit agency that offers a wide range of services to women with substance abuse issues, said Jennifer Barbour, the organization's communications specialist. She said the agency helps more than 600 people each year at its three facilities and is unique in the state because of the continuum-of-care services it offers.

Barbour said those range from outpatient support groups and other counseling at Crossroads' administrative offices in the Old Port, to residential services at the organization's halfway house off Back Cove and also at the 15-bed house in Windham.

Crossroads for Women stands out in Maine because it is the only agency in the state to let women have their minor children live with them while they're receiving inpatient treatment to recover from chemical dependency, Barbour said.

The Windham home has beds for children ages 10 and under and a day care program for the children so the women can devote themselves to their treatment and recovery, Barbour said.

Among the jobs that the Pierce Atwood volunteers tackled at the home last week was building an enclosure for the bikes and toys of children staying at the home with their mothers.

The volunteer activities at the Windham facility, a home where the Crossroads for Women program started more than 30 years ago in 1974, was part of the law firm's annual Day of Community Service.

Whittier said that since 2004, Pierce Atwood has shut down its Portland office for a day each year while the majority of its more than 200 employees roll up their sleeves to do a different kind of work for a variety of nonprofit groups.

"It's nice to get out and work hard ... and wake up a little sore the next day," said Whittier, who helped out at the Crossroads facility last week.

To choose the nonprofit agencies Pierce Atwood will volunteer at each year, the firm sends out a call in the spring asking organizations to submit proposals explaining what work they need done and why they need the help.

Then, Pierce Atwood employees vote on which groups they'll help, Whittier said.

She said that in addition to Crossroads for Women, the law firm also worked at Camp Ketcha in Scarborough; Riding to the Top, a therapeutic riding program in Windham; and the new St. Brigid's School in Portland.

That new Roman Catholic elementary school is a consolidated school that combines the former St. Patrick's and St. Joseph's elementary schools.

It will be located in the St. Joseph's school building on Stevens Avenue in Portland when it opens in September, and the law firm volunteered to help move the furniture from the St. Patrick's building on Congress Street to the Stevens Avenue building, Whittier said.

She said that individuals from Pierce Atwood also do pro bono legal work and volunteer in the community, but she said the idea behind the firm's community service day is to have large groups of people tackle whole projects for a nonprofit agency.

"By going to a location and giving seven to eight hours of our time, you can really get something jump-started for an organization," Whittier said.

Barbour said this is the first year that Crossroads for Women learned about the Pierce Atwood volunteer effort and is grateful it was chosen.

The house where the volunteers worked painting and improving the garden and grounds is more than 100 years old and needs the upkeep, she said.

Barbour said the facility, where the average stay is about a month, requires staffing 24 hours a day to meet the needs of the women staying there and their children.

"Obviously, the first thing to concentrate on is treatment, and we don't have a lot of time to tend to the garden and fix the fences," Barbour said.