Ward first joined FSB in February 2021 as Director of Clinical Services for both the Newark and Kearny locations. She initially wanted to work at FSB to have a supervisory role. When the opportunity arose to lead the agency, she decided to apply for that position.

“I am really excited to promote Christina Ward to FSB Director. She previously served as the Director of Clinical Services and now will have the overall responsibility for FSB,” said 91ż´Ć¬ Chief Operating Officer Fred Hunter. “Christina has a lot of mental health and substance abuse experience and I am looking forward to FSB’s continued community impact under her leadership.”

As FSB Director, Ward oversees both the Newark and Kearny offices. Her responsibilities include running staff meetings, correspondence with state agencies, grant reporting, grant research and signing progress notes.

Ward previously worked as a corrections officer where she was introduced to social work. An injury forced her to leave that position. She then worked at a halfway house and decided to pursue a master’s degree in social work.

“I ended up just really enjoying it and being very good at it,” she said. “So then I got an internship at Integrity House, and that’s where I got basically all of my training.”

Ward interned at Integrity House while in school and was then hired as a counselor, which helped propel her career forward. After Integrity House, she worked at New Jersey Reentry Corporation due to her unique experience with law enforcement and social work. She then moved on to Turning Point Alcohol and Drug Treatment Center as a Team Lead, which provided her with more on-the-job training and prepared her for the move to FSB. She had worked in managerial roles in previous industries, like retail, before entering the Health and Human Services field and decided to combine the two skills.

Ward finds her work rewarding.

“My favorite part of the field is watching people grow,” she said. “Having them come to you with an issue and then actually seeing them work through the issue and then leaving with hope for their future.”

Ward grew up in Newark and only recently moved out of the city. That has helped her in her roles at FSB.

“I relate to a lot of the people from this area,” she said.

After graduating high school in Newark, Ward earned her bachelor’s degree in Technical Management from DeVry University and is a member of the Sigma Beta Delta honor society. She earned her master’s degree in Social Work at Rutgers University and is a member of the Phi Alpha honor society.

Ward got married in April and moved to Lyndhurst with her wife.

She is an artist and creates work with spray paint. When she was young, she attended Arts High School in Newark for its summer arts program and attended high school there for communications. She initially was an art major in college but decided to keep it as a hobby instead of a career. In her spare time, she also enjoys playing video games.

“Vito Andrisani brings his mental health and counseling expertise to Family Service Bureau,” said 91ż´Ć¬ Chief Operating Officer Fred Hunter. “As the new Executive Director, we look forward to him building on an incredible program already providing vital services in our community.”

Andrisani has been a counselor since 1999 and has worked with a variety of clients, ranging in age from 5 to 81. He worked with children in group homes and was a teacher’s assistant in special education where he worked with behaviorally challenged students. He worked with schizophrenic adults and behaviorally challenged adults, as well as those dealing with substance abuse.

“I’ve been director of a methadone clinic, I’ve been director of outpatient, I’ve been director of detox,” Andrisani said. “I’ve worked in every level of care from detox to residential and then residential mental health as well as residential substance abuse.”

That variety of experience is beneficial in his current role with FSB, which provides outpatient services in behavioral health, including mental health and substance abuse. Andrisani is responsible for designing the programs at FSB.

“We need to have a mental health and a substance abuse program based on evidence-based practices, which means you’re doing the same thing every day that has already been proven to work,” he explained.

Andrisani believes that it’s important to treat the whole person since oftentimes mental health issues and substance abuse are co-occurring. He is also a champion of 91ż´Ć¬â€™s mission statement to help residents of inner cities improve the quality of their lives to reflect individual God-given dignity and personal achievement.

“I have a strong belief that if we don’t take care of the human being first, what we’re trained to do is not going to be successful. It’s not going to last,” he said.

In addition to designing the programs for FSB, Andrisani hires and schedules staff, coordinates ongoing training, ensures regulations and grant rules are followed and networks with referral sources.

Prior to his career in counseling, Andrisani was attending medical school and became a freelance photographer in Italy. He has photographed Jermaine Jackson and even had a chance encounter where he was able to photograph Pope John Paul II at an airport. He gave up freelance photography because the lifestyle wasn’t conducive to starting a family, which he wanted.

Andrisani grew up in Paterson and lives in Passaic County with his wife, son and daughter. While he gave up freelance photography, he still enjoys taking photos and has passed along some of his knowledge to his son, who received his first camera at age 2. Now that he’s 10, he takes photos with his own equipment and uses his sister as a model.

Throughout his experiences, Andrisani has always enjoyed talking with and learning about people and their lives, which he brings to his work as a counselor and supervisor.

“People are very challenging,” he said. “They present differently for different reasons.”

Harmony House, 91ż´Ć¬â€™s transitional housing facility for homeless families, received a $1,500 Community Grant from Walmart to expose residents to art, recreation and other cultural experiences.

The facility received the grant Dec. 29 from the Walmart in Kearny and will use it in 2018.

The Walmart Foundation offers Community Grants in eight different areas. Harmony House received funding for Quality of Life, which the Walmart Foundation defines as “improving access to recreation, arts or cultural experiences for low income individuals and families in the United States.”

Assistant Program Manager Dametria Wertz researched various grant opportunities that could benefit Harmony House and applied for the funding Dec. 14. After completing an eligibility quiz, she filled out the grant application online. 91ż´Ć¬ two weeks later, the $1,500 award arrived.

The money will be used to further enhance the programs offered at Harmony House and allow residents to have experiences they might not have otherwise had.

“Harmony House residents, specifically the children, will be able to be exposed to the arts, something they may not have otherwise had an opportunity to achieve,” Wertz said. “It will open their minds to more than just their surroundings, be an escape from their reality and inspire them to change their reality. Hopefully it will help inspire a child to pick up a pencil or a paintbrush, write, dance, act, sing and create.”

91ż´Ć¬ Chief of Health and Social Services Arti Kakkar is grateful to have received the grant, which is the first Walmart has awarded to Harmony House.

“We want to thank Walmart for their donation because every small bit counts to enrich the activities for our young kids,” she said.

Community Grants from the Walmart Foundation range from $250 to $2,500. In addition to Quality of Life, the organization offers funding in the following areas: Hunger Relief and Healthy Eating, Health and Human Service, Education, Community and Economic Development, Diversity and Inclusion, Public Safety and Environmental Sustainability. Management at the local Walmart facility make funding recommendations.