Crestwood Behavioral Health

11/16/2025

Santa Barbara Out of the Darkness Community Walk!

Crestwood was proud to sponsor the American Foundation for Su***de Prevention's Santa Barbara Out of the Darkness Community Walk on October 4. Staff from Crestwood's Champion Healing Center participated in the event. It was truly a beautiful and impactful experience, walking together along the beach and through the UCSB campus, surrounded by a sense of hope, connection and community! There were a few speakers who shared their stories of loss, strength and healing. It reminded us of why it is so important to talk about mental health and to support one another! We had the opportunity to choose beads that represented our personal connections to su***de. It was a simple but powerful way to honor loved ones and show our support! It definitely was an emotional and inspiring day, and we are so grateful we were able to experience it together as a team!

11/15/2025

NAMIWalks San Luis Obispo County!

This is the second year that Crestwood has participated in the San Luis Obispo County NAMIWalks (October 4) and each year it gets better! It is so wonderful to be a part of a community that is passionate about mental health and bringing not only awareness but support to those that need it. It is a breath of fresh air to be among other like-minded organizations who are so passionate about helping others. SLO truly is an amazing county to collaborate with!

11/14/2025

Zumba Summit 2025!

The Zumba Summit (August 26 – 28) was an incredible event! Two days of learning, connection, choreography & fun!! Having Annalisa Brown, Zumba Jammer® and Eliza Stone, ZES® Zumba Education Specialist & Nutritionist there was so amazing!

Annalisa did a ZIN Jam where she taught us 4 choreographies, and Eliza and Greg taught cueing drills and a Seated Gold Class. Everyone was so engaged. Eliza also taught a Nutrition segment that was very informative.

The evening Karaoke was incredibly fun and it was priceless to see everyone just let go and be silly. It was wonderful to be able to see everyone from all over the state connect, share successes and challenges, share ideas, and be inspired!

11/13/2025

A Message from Patty Blum, Crestwood Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President

Humility in Leadership

Many of us look for leaders in our work and community by searching for someone who is charismatic, visionary, or extraordinary in some specific area or field. However, as we look at what makes a leader remarkable, it is not usually those characteristics. Research shows us that what makes a leader able to motivate and inspire is humility (Forbes 2023).

The research by Bradley Owens, Professor of Business Ethics at Brigham Young University, found that teams with leaders ranked as more humble performed better. Many researchers have had similar results. Dr. Franziska Frank found that more than 95 percent of employees want a humble leader, and more than 97 percent of managers want to be one. She writes in her book "The Power of Humility in Leadership" that humility in leaders benefits the employees, the organization and the managers by expanding their sense of humility. A New York Times reviewer found that Dr. Frank, “makes a convincing case that humility in leadership is a source of strength and not a sign of weakness and that it benefits an organization’s ecosystem.”

The Oxford Review reviewed the concept and found that the research of J.A. Morris, C.M. Brotheridge and J. Urbanski determined that humility comprises of three key elements of:

1. Self-awareness or the ability to be able to understand one’s own strengths and weaknesses from a more objective and external standpoint.
2. Openness or a willingness to explore and take on new ideas, thinking, knowledge and behaviors in the light of external evidence.
3. Transcendence or the ability to be able to move away from one’s subjective perspective and take on an inclusive and more objective perspective of both themselves and the context.

These are not easy ingredients, yet they are attainable, and we have the ability to expand our humility. Dr. Frank outlines four steps to becoming a humble leader.

1. Ensure you know your strengths and weaknesses and practice showing them.

* Get regular feedback from your team - either in meetings where everyone can share open and direct feedback, surveys or 360 degree feedback forms.
* Share your strengths and weaknesses with your team. Identify areas where someone else’s skills can complement yours and ask for help. People who ask for advice are considered competent and give the person being asked a sense of accomplishment.

2. Be willing to learn.

* Lifelong learning is a key part of having a growth mindset, the belief that your talents and abilities can be further developed—and the will to actively seek new opportunities to learn.

3. Show your appreciation of your colleagues.

* Train yourself to truly see what others do and deliver. Give clear and concrete feedback to peers, employees, and even bosses (yes, they are people, too!) about how and when they have helped you.

4. Keep the bigger picture in mind.

* A successful leader understands empowerment for the bigger picture. Setting the course and involving many in establishing the direction and actions for an organization increases the optimal outcome.

Dr. Frank summarizes that becoming a humble leader relieves some of the management burden by freeing leaders from having to know everything and instead enabling them to achieve their goals via motivated employees. At Crestwood, we see humble leaders in all our service areas and at all of our campuses, including the people we serve. Practicing humble leadership benefits our whole Crestwood family and is an important cornerstone of our organization that shapes our values and allows us to be the best leaders we can be.

11/11/2025

Check out the New York Times article that features our San Francisco Geary Stabilization Unit!

The article focuses on making San Francisco’s streets safer by creating new programs and services for people in crisis to help address mental health and substance use issues. The Geary SU may now serve as a model program for other communities across the country!

A former Goodwill thrift store now houses an urgent care clinic for people experiencing mental health breakdowns in public.

11/11/2025

Thank You to all our veterans and military families for your dedication and service to our country!

10/30/2025

Crestwood's Peer Support Workforce

"Taking a Crash Course in Recovery Listening Skills"
by Chris Martin, Crestwood Sr. Director of Learning and Performance

You can scan through any college course catalog and find numerous courses on speaking, such as health communication, organizational communication, public speaking, argumentation, debate, etc. But it won’t be often when you can find a course in listening. So, because listening is a key skill in recovery work, this might be a great time to take a free crash course. Read through the following ten recovery listening skills and take the quiz afterwards.

1. Be Present and Pleasant: Do a mindfulness activity to get fully present and present a welcoming attitude.
2. Start with the Heart: Connect to the person on the personal (heart) level while assuming positive regard and empathy for them and their concerns.
3. Turn on the Utility of Humility: Take on the attitude that the person is there to teach you something or provide you with new important information.
4. Assign the Time: Set or agree upon the time for the person’s sharing. For example, you could say, “I have some time for you to share what’s been happening with you, and then it will be important for me to ask you some follow up questions. Does that work for you?"
5. Detect to Reflect: Discern the person’s feelings, needs, and/or concerns and reflect these back to them to ensure you got it right.
6. Suspend the Agenda: Set aside preconceived judgements that you know all about the situation and/or know how to fix it, i.e., “I’ve been there done that.”
7. Clear the Mirror: See the person in the full, positive light of who they are in the moment, not through a lens of who they were yesterday or from the days before.
8. Center the Locus of Focus: Keep the focus on the person and what they are saying.
9. Listen Actively, Not “Didactically”: Maintain a reverence for silence as the person is sharing and resist interrupting or one upping.
10. Make a Pact to Act: Conclude with a plan of action to address and validate the person’s feelings, needs, or concerns. The plan might just be an agreement on an adjustment of expectations or attitude. It’s important to the people we serve, our colleagues, and for our recovery culture that we, as recovery responders, are not hearers only but also doers.

Alright, please put your pens and hi-lighters down. Now that you’ve taken the course, you’ll find your quiz scores in your relationship outcomes with the people you serve and your co-workers.

10/23/2025

Community Resiliency Model (CRM) at CASRA

On September 10, three of Crestwood’s CRM Teachers had the pleasure of presenting a 90-minute Community Resiliency Model (CRM) Overview at the CASRA Conference in Oakland, CA. Over 40 Behavioral Health Professionals from across California attended what quickly became a standing-room-only session.

The presentation focused on the three core skills of CRM, emphasizing the importance of utilizing our own resiliency to support ourselves through challenging moments. The group was energized and engaged as we shared concepts and practices that foster wellness.

We were especially proud to showcase how Crestwood incorporates CRM tools to support both the individuals we serve and our employees’ wellness—truly the icing on the cake! Representing Crestwood and helping to spread CRM within other Behavioral Health communities was an honor and a rewarding experience.

10/16/2025

A Message from Patty Blum, Crestwood Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President

Commitment 2025

Commitment is defined as the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause, activity, or belief. Commitment is one of our Values at Crestwood and we have defined it as, “Follow through is basic. Crestwood is uncompromising in our commitment to quality and expertise. We are firm in our commitment to socially responsible business practices and community responsiveness.”

Throughout our 57 years, Crestwood has demonstrated our commitment every day to the people we serve; to the people we employ; communities; counties; businesses that we partner with; to the environment in which we operate; and to the fiscal sustainability of providing the highest quality of behavioral health services. We have done so by never veering from our Values and Recovery Pillars. Crestwood has maintained the pledge to provide exemplary accredited services to the most disenfranchised population in California.

Crestwood’s commitment is to create a continuum of services that empower our persons served to live and succeed in their communities. This has been demonstrated through the growth based on community needs. Crestwood has worked with counties to develop new services, design new programs and open new sites in areas where they are most needed. This year, Crestwood’s commitment to diversifying services includes adding the voluntary Crisis Stabilization Unit at Geary Street in San Francisco. And later this Fall, we will be opening the Selma Wellness Center, our first Justice-Informed MHRC. We have partnered with the Department of State Hospitals to open this program with the focus on restoration services, while growing the Co-Occurring Recovery (COR) service model across our organization. Crestwood’s commitment to California communities is as strong today as it was when our organization began and we will continue to keep growing and honoring it well into the future.

10/10/2025

October 10 is World Mental Health Day! At Crestwood, mental health is the heartbeat of our organization. We are honored to serve people on their recovery journeys, and we recognize the strength and resilience in each individual. Thank you to our persons served, for inspiring us to see that recovery is real! And thank you to our staff, who are making a daily difference in the lives of the people we serve. You are champions for mental health, all day every day! Together, Crestwood is a network of hope throughout the state of California. How can we improve mental health across the world? It starts with us. It starts in our communities. How will you make a difference in your community this World Mental Health Day?

09/27/2025

Spotlight on Linton Melman - 45 Years of Service

This September, we proudly celebrate LVN Linton Melman for his 45 years of dedicated service at Crestwood Manor Modesto.

Linton began his career in 1980 as a Nurse Assistant. Shortly after, he completed his CNA training and became a Certified Nursing Assistant. He later advanced to Senior Aide CNA on Station 1, where he guided and supported fellow CNAs with their daily assignments. With the help of a Crestwood scholarship, Linton pursued his education to become an LVN–all while continuing to work at Crestwood as both a CNA and in Transportation/Central Supply.

After earning his LVN license, Linton became our Station 2 PM LVN, where he continues to serve today. He is a cornerstone of our all-male unit and is deeply respected by both peers and residents. His rapport with staff and residents alike reflects his compassion and commitment to care.

Linton chose nursing as a career because he was inspired by the Crestwood team, and in turn, he has inspired three of his daughters to follow in his footsteps. His knowledge, experience, and dedication have made him the go-to person for new nurses and seasoned staff alike.

Beyond his professional life, Linton cherishes spending time with his children and grandchildren. He enjoys movies, relaxing at home, and the occasional trip to the casino–where he has been known to win a jackpot or two!

Linton’s smile is infectious, his presence uplifting, and his contributions immeasurable. Crestwood is truly fortunate to have him as part of our family. Thank you, Linton, for your 45 years of service and for brightening our station every single day!

09/25/2025

Spotlight on Helen Arcala - 35 Years of Service

This September, Crestwood Manor Stockton proudly celebrates Dietary Aide, Helen Arcala, who has helped prepare and serve wonderful meals to the people at Crestwood Manor for 35 years!

Helen came to work for Crestwood upon the recommendation of her late husband who worked as a janitor and her sister-in-law who was a CNA at the time. She also was encouraged to apply by friends who worked in the Dietary department. Helen says she likes Crestwood because, “They take care of people like my Mom and Dad.” She likes the atmosphere at Crestwood and the staff, especially her coworkers and supervisor.

Helen enjoys spending time with her family during her time off, along with gambling at the casino and shopping with her kids. She is eagerly waiting for grandchildren and looks forward to eventually retiring to spend time with them. Helen would like to travel and see some new places, with a dream of traveling to Japan.

Helen’s coworkers describe her as a good worker, respectful, and dependable. They say she is a delight to work with, expressing a great sense of humor and is an overall good person! Coworkers also say Helen is loveable and caring and they appreciate how helpful she is. They love her cooking, especially her pancit!

The Stockton Team couldn’t be more proud to celebrate Helen’s milestone of 35 years of service at Crestwood!!