We are here to help families get children the mental health treatment they need.
• Children and adolescents with mental health problems are the most underserved    disability group.
• About 12 percent of children under 18 have problems that require mental health    treatment.
• 70 – 80 percent of these children get inappropriate mental health services or no    help at all.
• Some parents blame themselves and may be too embarrassed to discuss the    possibility of a mental disorder with an outside source.
• There are no simple answers but we are here to ease the frustration of finding    help.

Some families do not get the help they need.
• There is a stigma faced by families when raising a child with an emotional,    behavioral, and mental disorder.
• Parents frequently blame themselves for their child's behavior.
• Many parents are too embarrassed or fearful to talk about their child’s mental    health.
• Some families feel unable to take advantage of public recreational, educational and    social activities that most families enjoy.
• As a family's isolation grows, their ability to access help for their children    decreases.
• Wisconsin Family Ties exists to ease family isolation and frustration and to help    empower them to access the services their children need to become productive    and successful citizens of their communities.

As an organization of families, we observe the critical impact families can have in the change process that leads to a mental health system that is sufficiently funded, coordinated, comprehensive, family-centered and community-based. We have been working in the last ten years to ensure that families have a voice in, access to, and ownership in the mental health system that serves them.