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CASSOPOLIS — The Cass County Problem-Solving Courts traditionally host graduation celebrations in each court for program participants who successfully graduate. However, over the past year, COVID-19 put in-person graduation celebrations on hold just like many other in-person events.

On June 21, some normalcy returned with a joint celebration for all of Cass County’s Problem-Solving Courts at Cass County’s Don Horne Park on a sunny day that featured a cookout and presentations by each of Cass County’s three judges to commemorate the hard work being done by individuals choosing to make recovery a priority by entering a Problem-Solving Court program. Cass County Courts have a full continuum of Problem-Solving Courts including Cass County’s first Problem-Solving Court, Family Treatment Court, presided over by Chief Judge Susan L. Dobrich, Adult Treatment Court & Sobriety Court presided over by District Court Judge Stacey A. Rentfrow, Swift & Sure Sanctions Probation Program and Mental Health Court presided over by Circuit Court Judge Mark A. Herman. These courts would not be possible without the dedicated multi-disciplinary teams including our grant writer and Consultant, Dr. Barbara Howes, who has collaborated alongside our courts since the beginning of the county’s Problem-Solving Court journey, officials said.

“The summer 2021 celebration is a great opportunity to celebrate,” said Cass County Courts’ Chief Judge Susan L.  Dobrich. “We’ve all been locked up for the last 14-15 months, yet we still got the work done through innovation and learning to do things in new ways. We really appreciate how hard everyone works. It is really important to celebrate our successes. Our participants do hard work in our Problem-Solving Courts and as judges we look forward to hearing from our participants who are bright, intelligent, and strong making life changes that lead to additional growth with the support and accountability provided by our Problem-Solving Court teams made up of multi-disciplinary professionals trained in evidence-based practices. While participants in the Problem-Solving Courts are the initial beneficiaries of these programs, we are proud of the impact this work has on the participants’ children and entire extended families since addiction and mental health issues impact the entire family. We are so proud of our treatment community made up of professionals, mentors, peers, and others who have been successful in helping themselves and others to incorporate recovery into people’s daily lives and who pay what they’ve learned forward to continue to grow our recovery community. Togethe,r we are doing great things to change lives, restore families, and improve our community.”