Mediation Services of Adams County or MSAC was registered as a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization in Adams County in the late 1990s. We started having weekly articles the second Thursday of the month in the Gettysburg Times in 2008. We have been part of the Adams County Foundation Giving Spree since the first one. So we have been working to bring peaceful and constructive communication to homes, neighborhoods, churches, and organizations by mediating difficult conflicts and training people to mediate for 28 years. Still we talk with people who were here then until now about mediation, and some say, “I’ve never heard of that. What is mediation?” This happens in spite of the articles we’ve written, advertising each training session we’ve had, and talks with law enforcement, church, and other community groups where we have done presentations. MSAC has been a well-kept secret in spite of our efforts to publicize it.
We have had a webpage, www.mediateadams.org for many years. However, in the last year it has been transformed so it is much better, and we have a professional webmaster who updates it often. There are 5 pages. The Home page tells our purpose which is Helping People to Resolve Conflicts; it also tells our Mission, Vision, Core Values, and What Happens in a Mediation. Page 2 What Is Mediation? explains mediation and the process to request a mediation through 1) filling out a secure confidential intake form on the website, 2) making an email request at <mediationac@yahoo.com> or 3) calling 717-334-7312. The very reasonable sliding scale based on income is also here.
Page 3 Services lists the main types of conflict we mediate including divorce, custody, elder, and community. Resources, page 4 has information about the board and mediators and has a library of the articles that have been published in the Gettysburg Times if you would like to reread one of them. The last page, Contact Us, has all of the contact information for MSAC. You may notice that the pages emphasize that MSAC is in Adams County, PA; that’s because we have had a number of inquiries from Adams County, CO where Denver is. At the bottom of each page you will see the 5 circles of the MSAC logo. In the left of the center circle a rectangle button says “Home” and in the right of that circle a button says “Facebook”; a click on either button will take you to that page. Or you can use the Facebook search function to find Mediation services of Adams County. On Facebook you can check out Reels. MSAC is also on Instagram.
So you can see that Mediation Services of Adams County is out there on the web; please look for us and like us. Our website is www.mediateadams.org, and with links to Facebook. You may contact us at mediationac@yahoo.com. Unfortunately our phone, 717-334-7312, is down right now but hopefully it will be back in service soon.
Mary Kay Turner is a board member, mediator, and trainer with Mediation Services of Adams County.
