I have Judge Wallace with me who is from Montgomery County Juvenile Court. Thank you for being here.

You’re very welcome. I’m pleased to be here.

So, how long have you been involved with Daybreak and how did you get connected with us?

Well, I began working in Montgomery County in 2001 as a prosecutor in the juvenile division.

Through that role I learned about Daybreak, and it was often that we’d contact Daybreak for kids that had nowhere else to go—it wasn’t appropriate for them to be detained but they couldn’t go home. Sometimes there needed to be a break between parents and the child or there was an unruly situation. We would reach out to Daybreak.

Daybreak has always been such a help and an asset to the community because it gives kids a place to go in an emergency situation.

Through my career, I changed roles. I was a guardian ad litem and then a defense attorney. So, I kept up with Daybreak.

Now I’m a judge. I’ve been a judge in Montgomery County Juvenile Court since 2019. I remember the old [Daybreak] building. It was just wonderful to come in today and see this huge beautiful new building that serves the community.

Yeah, that’s my next question, how have you seen Daybreak change? So, it’s definitely grown a lot since you first started.

Yes, and the independent living component I think is one of the most exciting parts of the growth. Not only do you have 24 spaces for independent living, but the services that you offer young people, the life skills, the mental health counseling, job training, wraparound services; and helping them transition to actual independent living is amazing and very cool.

Through the state of Ohio, part of the cases that I hear are Bridges cases. So, I see the statewide program that facilitates independent living and being a bridge from foster care for a child who’s turned 18 until they’re 21.

I know that you do very similar work and I think it’s amazing because people don’t realize that if children, young adults, don’t have a support system or a family it’s almost impossible for them to be successful without some major catastrophes along the way.

Yeah, definitely. So, when things changed and we moved to our new facility over on Patterson, how have you seen things change? Do you see a lot of youth still that go through juvenile courts or or what is that relationship like today?

Sure, well through our Intervention Center, we refer a lot of kids over to you because it’s not appropriate for them to be detained in a criminal justice setting so parents or the police have just come to us for services.

In 2024, we referred 60 youth over to you. And in 2023, we referred 89. So, we utilize Daybreak a lot. Then our magistrates and sometimes I, as a judge, will place a kid or refer a kid to Daybreak because they have no other place to go. So, our judicial officers also use Daybreak if it’s a very tense situation or an emergency situation.

This collaboration allows the child or the young person to stay here for 3 to 5 days and often times that cooling off period is all that’s needed for a family to calm down and gather together for us to get services in place.

They can communicate better, and things can go forward positively.

Yeah, definitely. I can imagine that would be extremely beneficial to have that kind of breathing room.

I don’t know what we would do without Daybreak to be frank. There are many situations where it’s such an asset to the community.

Thanks! We are so happy to have advocates like you out in the community who refer those who need our services. You’re a big part of why we’re still here and make sure that we stay here. What has surprised you the most since you first heard about us and have seen us grow over the years?

I don’t know if surprise is maybe the answer but the willingness to think out of the box, like David’s place. When that was created in 2021 for children to come and wash their clothes, have something to eat, be able to have therapy and talk to people who care. I think that was an example of Daybreak being innovative and reaching out into the community to offer even more services.

I’ve been thoroughly impressed at the services that Daybreak has offered. I’ve seen many children that are struggling just in in life and the support that Daybreak offers has changed their lives. I mean, people caring about children is what they need, and you do a wonderful job, and your staff does a wonderful job of just wrapping these kids with love.

Thank you! That is of the things we try to let people know the most—it’s not any one specific problem; it’s just having adults who listen and that stability it provides. It’s the foundation.

What’s one of the things you enjoy the most about Daybreak and the work we do here?

I think the partnership that you have with so many members and organizations in the community is truly wonderful. And the cooperative spirit in which you interact with our court, the sharing of appropriate information so that we can best meet a child, or family’s needs, is one of the things that is very special about Daybreak.

Very easy to work with, everybody involved wants to do what’s best for the child but sometimes we get in our silos—different organizations. With Daybreak, we don’t have that problem. There’s a lot of interaction and sharing of information.

Awesome! Yeah, that is what that constellation of support is, all interconnected so it’s one part of many factors that are needed for the youth to have that success.

I did think of something that surprised all of us and that was during COVID when we switched to allowing kids to appear via Zoom from Daybreak instead of transporting them to the court.

That has shifted and changed so many things, your resources not having to transport kids to court, kids feeling more comfortable speaking. And even though COVID has passed, we still have that practice with Daybreak and not a lot of people do we allow to appear in court via video. But the kids you serve are appropriate for that, they’re more comfortable and feel more supported.

So, that was a surprise for everybody what we could do via video but it’s something that, again, you were innovative with and we took that forward. It’s been a big change.

Yeah, that’s amazing that you’re still offering that option. I can imagine how that would be so helpful to have that safe environment but still do what they need to do.

Thank you so much! We appreciate you and your advocacy and everything you do.

Make sure you’re all caught up on 50 Faces 50 Voices interviews and stay tuned for more as we continue celebrating 50 years serving the Miami Valley. Also, make sure you save the date for April 24, Daybreak is having an open house 5PM-8PM and we would love to see you there!