Ms. Ann Dake, Executive Director. Ann has over fifteen years of experience in the provision of mental health services to children, youth and families. This experience entails work in the areas of outreach, counseling, intensive therapeutic treatment and mental health service administration. In 2003, she founded CHAPS Academy, Inc. and has served as the agency’s Executive Director since its inception. While building the agency into a well-established, leading provider of equine-assisted intervention services to high-risk children and youth and their families, she has continued to engage in counseling. Her areas of expertise include program development and management, child and adolescent counseling, and family systems counseling.Her specialty is in working with at risk adolescent girls and their families.She has had a love of horses all her life and through her work at CHAPS has been able to integrate her skills as a mental health counselor with her passion for horses.Ms. Dake possesses a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Human Services from the University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh and a Master of Arts Degree in Social Work from the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee.
Jax Anderson
Jax Anderson, MAC, Program Coordinator/Counselor. I have been working as an Independent Contractor at Chaps since September of 2007 primarily in the Hope Lives Program.Due to the incredible growth Chaps is experiencing I was recently hired as Program Coordinator. The Hope Lives program at Chaps was designed for and offers horse assisted therapy to adolescents who are experiencing at risk behaviors that threaten to put their lives in danger such as self harming behaviors and suicidal ideation. I attended UW-Oshkosh for my undergraduate degree in psychology; and I graduated from LakelandCollege with my graduate degree in Counseling. I bring a diverse, colorful background to Chaps due to my past work experience in Human Services and Law Enforcement. My experience with horses is slender however I have always had a desire to be near them.The staff and the horses at Chaps have taught me quite a lot about working with horses from a different perspective. I enjoy working with adolescents; not only do they help keep me young, but they inspire me with their courage, resilience and strength. I am in constant admiration of all adolescent’s talent for creative coping and bravery in the face of adversities that may appear overwhelming and hopeless. My job is a blessing and I am rewarded daily by adolescents and families who find peace with themselves and each other because of Chaps.
Michelle
Michele has been working at CHAPS since May 2005. She began here as an intern with the UW-Oshkosh Human Services program. During this time Michele started the Special Gifts program which serves children and families with disabilities and developmental disabilities such as Autism, Aspergers Syndrome, and ADHD using horses for the therapy process. There was a need for this type of program and she had the experience working with kids with developmental disabilities. Michele is now the Program Coordinator of the Special Gifts program at CHAPS and is currently pursuing a Masters in Counseling from LakelandCollege. She will be finishing up her degree with her internships being completed at CHAPS.
Michele came to CHAPS with a vast experience working with children and adolescents with a variety of disabilities. She gained this experience working at Chileda; a treatment center for children ages 7-21 with developmental disabilities and working as a Line Therapist with the Fox Valley Autism Treatment Program. When Michele started her work at CHAPS she had very little experience with horses, but the CHAPS horses soon taught her that a big heart, the drive to work with kids and some affection for them was all it would take to make this program work for the kids and their families. Michele stated, “I have loved working with kids for as long as I can remember and when I was a kid I always wanted a horse. I consider myself truly blessed to be able to combine the two to make a career. The work I do is so rewarding because I am able to see children and their families learn and grow together so that they are able to fulfill their potentials despite the disabilities that they are facing.”
Adin with Buck
Adin Crandall. Adin has been a pastor in the Church of the Nazarene since 1967 in both Wisconsin and Illinois.During those years he had many opportunities to do child and family counseling.Adin joined the counseling staff at CHAPS in 2005.He grew up and graduated in the Antigo, Wisconsin area. At 10 years of age he began working with horses with his father in logging operations.He has had a great interest in horses ever since.Using horses in the counseling procedure is a natural extension of Adin’s love of horses, as well as his love of children and interest in their welfare.Adin is married and has two adult children, 6 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren.He has a Bachelors degree in Religion and Philosophy from OlivetNazareneUniversity in Kankakee, IL.
Angie Flannery
Angie Flannery, MSE, LPC. Angie received her Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1990. She is a certified social worker in the State of Wisconsin as well as a Licensed Professional Counselor, receiving her Master’s Degree in Community Counseling in 2007 from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Angie has worked and volunteered in a variety of settings over the past 20 years providing extensive experience with families and children, parenting, mental health issues, and sexual abuse victims. In addition to her work with adoption, Angie is a child and family therapist providing outpatient counseling and In Home family counseling. Angie has also served on the executive board of the Wisconsin Counseling Association for the past 5 years.
In her free time, Angie enjoys spending time with her husband and 3 children, gardening, reading, and volunteering with her church, her children’s school, and with the Red Cross Disaster Assessment Team.
