Aspiranet Residential Director celebrates 30 years of forming connections with youth in need at Turlock’s Excell Center

Aspiranet Residential Director Chris Essary is more than a familiar face among thousands of young boys and men who have walked through the doors of Turlock’s Excell Center in its 30 year history. To people he’s encountered through his field of work, he is a leader, a mentor, a friend, and for some, he’s considered a father figure.

Since launching his career in residential care 30 years ago, Essary has stewarded Excell’s growth from an all-boys ranch when it was founded in 1987, to the short-term residential treatment program it is today. The center, which is a program of leading human services agency Aspiranet, provides boys in foster care ages 10-19 individual treatment plans with goals for academics, social and behavior progress. The center is staffed with loving professional child care workers who act as surrogate parents.

“My philosophy to working with kids is encouraging them not to look backwards,” says Essary. “Some of these kids come from heartbreaking backgrounds and they’re impacted by the environments they grew up in. They want something better for themselves and we work toward their goal in creating a life that is meaningful for them. These kids are truly resilient, and watching them overcome adversity to achieve their dreams is inspiring and makes all the work worthwhile.”

Essary’s positive, nurturing approach has had a lasting effect on many he’s served. To this day, he remains in contact with a number of former Excell participants, some as old as 40 with families of their own, who look back fondly of the memories they have working with Essary and the loving staff during their time at Excell. His work with foster youth also inspired him to foster and adopt his son, Jensen, in 2000. Last year, Essary became a grandfather to his son’s daughter, Olivia Grace.

The Excell Center is a leading example of California AB-403’s Continuum of Care Reform (CCR), a new law that limits the time youth in foster care can spend in a group home settings and requires them to be transitioned into home settings. Aspiranet is one of t earliest adopters of CCR, which puts the nonprofit at the forefront of child welfare best practices.

“Chris’s dedication to our community’s most vulnerable youth span beyond the Excell Center,” said Vernon Brown, president and CEO of Aspiranet. “His leadership in Stanislaus County has helped put Aspiranet’s short-term residential program at the forefront of the changes we’re seeing in the foster care industry. His ability to go beyond the call of duty and compassionate nature brings out the best in those he serves and the colleagues he works with day-to-day.”

For more information about Aspiranet’s services and employment opportunities, visit www.aspiranet.org.

About Aspiranet

Aspiranet is a 501(c) (3), California nonprofit organization with the mission of providing children, youth, and families with a foundation of support and services so they can succeed at home, at school, and in their communities. Aspiranet offers a unique blend of services including foster family support, adoption through foster care, services for foster youth transitioning to adulthood, mental health services, residential care, intensive home-based care, and community-based family resources. For more than 40 years, Aspiranet has been dedicated to offering outstanding services that impact more than 35,000 children, youth and parents at 33 community-based sites statewide. For more information, visit www.aspiranet.org