El Centro de Amistad’s commitment to children, individuals, and families is unwavering during this time. During this period of great uncertainty with COVID-19, our ability to act quickly has been tested and has proven our commitment and dedication to our clients. In order to continue operations and serve our clients, ECDA has implemented telehealth services where we are able to support many families virtually as we abide by social distancing orders.
In recent weeks, our supplemental resource team that consist of Case Managers, Employment Specialists, Assessors, In-Home Outreach Counselors, and Peer Partner have actively been providing resources and linkage to our most vulnerable clients. Our supplemental resource team have been increasingly focused on supporting the continuation and expansion of critical services and resources that are essential for children and family well-being.
Our resource team have been actively assisting our clients with vital resources such as food pantries, unemployment benefits, utility assistance programs, food vouchers, and home eviction law protection aide. Unfortunately, this pandemic has brought many challenges to families who now fear being evicted after losing their jobs. Case Manager, Jennifer Vallecillo recalls an undocumented family that she is closely supporting that fears applying for government assistance in worries of being deported, “It has been challenging serving undocumented families experiencing hardships during COVID-19, these families are reluctant to apply for services in fear of being deported.”
These uncertain times not only affect our clients economically but also mentally. Dalia Limon, our Employment Specialist states, “Our client’s anxiety levels have increased. I have been conducting individual rehabilitation sessions to further assist clients by linking them to telehealth services, creating and maintaining a daily schedule for themselves and their children and following up on other important tasks in order to help reduce symptoms of mental health.” Our Peer Partner, Sonia Rodriguez works closely with clients that have high levels of anxiety and need assistance applying for aide “I assist clients who have high levels of anxiety and are not able to complete daily tasks such as making phone calls, and following up with other important duties . I research or make phone calls for clients if they have anxiety or other mental health barriers that prevent them from completing tasks.”
Working together, our team has not only assisted our clients with vital resources but have also help reduce stress and anxiety due to the pandemic. We are grateful to count on a dedicated group like our supplemental resource team to serve our clients and to continue to fulfill our mission of empowering families today for a better tomorrow
