Dear Friends:
The holidays offer a welcome chance to reflect on a remarkable year at Casa.
In May, we honored Founder Rick Quiroga on his retirement after 27 years of dedicated service to Casa Esperanza. In August, we recognized the achievements of 35 graduates of our residential and outpatient programs. Dignitaries and friends joined us in November to formally dedicate Nueva Esperanza, 14 new sober housing units with supportive services.
Casa continued to reach new milestones in evidence-based treatment. Clients completed residential treatment at rates double the 25% state average—60% of men, 40% of women. Outpatient behavioral services helped more than 85% of clients to maintain sobriety six months after residential care, while working with others who have had setbacks in recovery to re-engage with treatment before they experienced a full-scale relapse.
But statistics tell only part of our story. It is what happens every day, as clients face the challenges of re-building their lives, which speaks to the spirit of this season. They face a host of behavioral health and chronic illnesses, histories of homelessness, trauma, abuse, poverty, and a range of disparities almost too vast to comprehend.
A client who arrived at Casa, on December 30, 2010, shows the difference a year can make to an individual in need—and how your support helps Casa provide that help.
Keisa left the corrections system with one goal—to put her struggles on the streets of Springfield behind her. On her arrival at Latinas y Niños, she recalls, “It was a big step to say ‘I need help’, but from day one, the staff and tools were there for me. It helped me discover a lot of things I didn’t realize about my life, but also help me put the past in the past, and to look to the future. It gave back the strength to live, without using.”
“For me,” says Keisa, “this has been the greatest year of my life.”
Keisa’s hard work has led to remarkable success. She completed residential treatment in August, and participates in outpatient services. She is actively employed, taking classes to complete her GED, and became one of our first tenants at Nueva Esperanza this fall.
We hope you will consider a donation—in whatever amount you can—so that Casa can continue to assist those that seek our help, in the year ahead and for years to come.
Please accept our thanks for all the ways you support in these challenging times.
We wish you a happy, healthy and safe holiday season!
Emily Stewart
Executive Director
Click to download a donation form (and some recovery-friendly holiday tips!)
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