TREE HOUSE CHILDE AND FAMILY CENTER
Elkhorn, WI
Website | Phone: (262) 755-8733
Mission
It is the mission of the Tree House to promote safe, strong, and healthy environments for children and families through equitable access to child abuse prevention, education, and resource support. The Tree House annually reaches 7,000+ parents and primary caregivers, children, educators, and professional service providers throughout Walworth County and surrounding areas with upstream information and programs to prevent, recognize, and respond appropriately to all types of abuse.
Community Resources
One of Tree House's longest-standing programs is Holiday Elves, which is a support program that brings together families in need of holiday assistance with anonymous donor elves. Approximately 10% of the families served by this program in 2025 reside in the Lake Geneva area. Of the anonymous donors who support this program, 17% are residents of Lake Geneva, and their in-kind contributions provided a special holiday experience for more than 16% of the children who received gifts this year. The Tree House's holiday support program plays a crucial role in child abuse prevention in the following ways.
1) Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs) are crucial for healthy development and can help build resilience for children who have experienced trauma. By providing opportunities for positive family interactions such as shared meals, holiday activities, the Holiday Elves program can help strengthen family bonds and promote a more positive home environment. These experiences help children build a strong foundation for future well-being and success.
2) The Holiday Elves program offers not only gifts to children, but also provides families with access to additional resources such as Tree House programs, the Child and Family Resource Directory, free community meals, and more. These resources can help parents manage stress, connect to services, and ultimately develop healthier coping mechanisms. Walworth County’s largest reported allegation of child maltreatment is neglect which is defined as a caregivers failure to provide for a child’s basic needs. Neglect can have long-term negative effects on a child’s physical, emotional, and psychological development. Meeting basic needs is fundamental in preventing child abuse. In addition to gifts for the children, through the Holiday Elves program children are also receiving concrete supports such as winter gear, clothing, and bedding.
3) Financial and emotional stress can sometimes contribute to abusive situations. High levels of stress can impair a caregiver’s ability to manage their emotions and behaviors effectively. When caregivers are overwhelmed by stress, they may become more irritable, impatient, and prone to anger. This emotional overload can lead to inappropriate reactions towards children. They may resort to physical or emotional abuse as a misguided way to cope with their stress. By providing support and resources, the Holiday Elves program helps to reduce the stress that families may experience during the holiday season.
4) Social connection is identified as one of five protective factors, a research-based framework that helps families build resilience and prevent child abuse and neglect. The Holiday Elves program creates a sense of community and support. Families who feel connected and supported by their community are less likely to experience isolation that can sometimes lead to abusive behaviors.
5) Through referrals from outside agencies, the Tree House is connected to numerous families. Through staff interactions with the families, we have the opportunity to identify signs of stress or potential abuse. We can then provide additional support or refer families to appropriate services.
Most Urgent Need
At this time, the Tree House's most urgent need is unrestricted support. With our small staff and the help of a tremendous Board of Directors and volunteer team, we annually reach 7,000+ Walworth County residents through free offerings. While we are grateful for every funding opportunity, restricted funding often exempts those costs that allow a program or organization to be sustainable: salaries, utilities, maintenance, supplies, and other overhead costs. Additionally, this type of funding often supports very specific programs—funding to educate young expectant persons on newborn safety, funding to provide non-biological caregivers of children with a support network, et cetera. Because we are such a small staff, focusing on niche programs can mean we miss opportunities to serve other tremendous areas of need in the community.
Additionally, this year, the Tree House will pilot two new programs respectively serving fathers and LatinX parents/primary caregivers, as well as a new Safety Guidance Kit for families with children who are self-harming or expressing suicidal ideation.
With each of our programs, we are answering “yes” to three questions that are key to our mission. Are we advocating for children? Are we strengthening families? Are we increasing awareness of and access to prevention-based resources and support?
As the community need for our services continues to rise, so does our need for unrestricted support. This allows us to be responsive to the needs of children and families in our community and address gaps in service through programs, resources and support that can help stop child maltreatment before it starts.
