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VisionQuest's Story (1) 2 (3) (4)
It was perhaps these challenging outdoor activities that distinguished VisionQuest from many of the other programs that were being encouraged to develop by federal and state agencies as “alternatives to incarceration.” Starting with articles in 1979 in Parade Magazine and Life, in 1981 VisionQuest became an attraction for the national and international media which came in droves to film the unique experiences in VisionQuest. By 1987 every major US network had covered VisionQuest and film crews from Japan, France, Italy, and Germany all came to film major documentaries, some several times.
In a field dominated by non-profit organizations run by community boards of directors and chasing federal and state grants, VisionQuest was a privately held business which wanted to contract on a fee for services basis -- and it was getting a lot of media attention. With that attention came a backlash. In the 80’s many questions were raised about profit making organizations “making money off of kids.”
The amount of money that states spent on lock-ups and institutionalization was enormous and often hard to determine as it was spread throughout many budgets. It was VisionQuest’s intention to get states to disclose what the true costs were and then compete for that money. This seemed only logical to VisionQuest; however it challenged the status quo in the states where VisionQuest operated. There were many bold leaders (judges, state officials and probation officers) who took stands that were unpopular with the stake holders of the old system, and without whom VisionQuest would not have been able to get a foot in the door of their jurisdictions.
Over time, governments began to accept and embrace the idea of purchasing service because of the economies and innovations that were possible. These were the very things envisioned at the Long Beach seminar Bob Burton had attended back in 1973. Purchasers of service became more sophisticated and wanted new types of programs with proven outcomes, and VisionQuest was quick to respond. In 1992 VisionQuest opened its first short term shelter program to help the City of Philadelphia manage its need for shelter beds. In 1994, after a call for military-style short term programs, VisionQuest opened its first Boot and Hat Camp program providing treatment in a highly structured setting. In 1998 VisionQuest opened its first behavioral health component as an outpatient clinic. In 1999, with the need for more gender specific programming, the first Madalyn Program for Girls was opened in South Mountain and later Madalyn at Lady of the Lakes program for young mothers and their infants was opened in Western Pennsylvania.
VisionQuest expanded over the years to the states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Florida, and California. With each expansion knowledge was gained, expertise developed and trust was built. VisionQuest’s core group of leaders spread out to develop the new states in order to maintain the fabric that has always made VisionQuest succeed – that is, to keep the child in the center.
