1

A Welcome by our Senior Vice President, Shawn Jenkins

In the Loop with WestCare California

Shawn Jenkins

“Happy Spring, WestCare Family!

As you may already know, April is

National Volunteer Month. While we

would like to think that we can handle

everything on our own as staff, that

just simply isn’t always the case! Much

like those that we humbly serve, we

often reach out and accept help as

well, but from the communities in which we operate. This is

where volunteers come in to save the day and make some of our envisioned projects a reality! From

simple upkeep of our facilities to larger scale projects, volunteers are a crucial part of helping us meet

our goal of “Uplifting the Human Spirit” of those we serve.

We have seen a steady increase in volunteers visiting our sites within

the last year and there will be many more to come – so be prepared.

These volunteers come from all over the state of California and are ready

to help us in any way that they can. As an organization, we all have many

duties and one of those is to ensure that our volunteers are made to feel

welcome and valued. I know that as a team we can welcome them with a

smile and thank them for volunteering. We as staff need to embrace the

opportunities to teach and mentor these volunteers as to the WestCare

culture and family. Volunteers bring their time, talent and treasures to

our various programs and are an excellent marketing resource to the

greater community about who we are, what we do, where we serve and

why THEY choose to volunteer with us.

We are grateful for all of the help that we have received from these amazing individuals and are anxious to see what beauti-

ful things can come from their hard work and compassion! To all of the individuals who have taken the time to care for our pro-

grams and the individuals that we serve, thank you! We appreciate you more than you could imagine! Your selfless acts and de-

votion truly embody our motto of “Uplifting the Human Spirit!”

Sincerely,

Shawn A. Jenkins, Senior Vice President, WestCare California

A monthly newsletter that covers the events of A monthly newsletter that covers the events of

our programs in:our programs in:

Bakersfield Bakersfield -- Chico Chico -- Chowchilla/CCWFChowchilla/CCWF

Fresno Fresno -- Hanford Hanford -- Represa/Folsom Represa/Folsom

Sacramento Sacramento -- San Diego San Diego -- San Luis Obispo/CMC San Luis Obispo/CMC

Stockton Stockton -- Vacaville/SolanoVacaville/Solano

Issue 42 Volume 3 April 2016Issue 42 Volume 3 April 2016

In This Issue

1. A Welcome by our

Senior Vice President,

Shawn Jenkins

1. Staff Spotlight:

LTOP - CCWF

2. California News

2. Housing News

2. Veterans News

3. Treatment and

Rehabilitation News

3. Criminal Justice News

4. Kudos!

4. Question of the Month

5 - 7. Program Directory

7. Social Media Directory

Staff Spotlight: LTOP at Central California

Women’s Facility

“When asked to send a highlight of one of my

staff, it was very difficult! My staff are a wonderful

team that pull together to make the Long Term

Offender Program (LTOP) work so well. I am

blessed to have and work with each of them!” –

Val Sumner, Program Director, LTOP at Cen-

tral California Women’s Facility

Left to right: Andrea Ziebell, Melissa Dickerson, Katie Tkac, Erin Shelton, Rebekah Press-

ley, Arturo Buitron CCII, Theresa Martinez, Val Sumner, Jessica Underwood and David Smith

2

California News

3/11 - Baking for the Greater Good:

Some of our ladies from

our residential and Home-

Front programs along with

WestCare staff volun-

teered with the amazing

St. Francis Homeless Pro-

ject at the Institute of

Technology by helping make all natural dog treats!

Through their program, they provide educational training

for women in recovery or women who are experiencing

homelessness while helping the community. In all, they

baked about 2,500 dog treats which will be sold to help

cover the services that the St. Francis Homeless Project

provides for our homeless citizens in the Central Valley.

Housing News

3/17 - MAP Point Celebrates One Year!:

MAP Point, a collaborative effort between various organi-

zations from the Fresno Madera Continuum of Care, re-

cently celebrated its first year of operation! Located on

the grounds of the Poverello House, MAP Point serves as

a one-stop-shop for our Central Valley’s homeless popu-

lation by linking them to services through a list of provid-

ers including WestCare California. The event featured an

address from Fresno Mayor, Ashley Swearengin and high-

lighted the program’s various successes in its first year

including over 3,500 people seen; 681 of which were fam-

ilies and 324 were Veterans! We look forward to more

great news from this amazing and innovative program!

3/16 - Sober Spring 2016:

We were happy to co-present

the third annual Sober Spring

alcohol awareness fair at Fresno

City College in conjunction with

the Inter-Club Council. Three

WestCare California booths

were present along with other

community vendors and booths

ran by student clubs whom pre-

sented on facts and dangers re-

garding binge drinking and other

forms of substance abuse. Our

"Drunk chopper" obstacle

course was a huge hit with stu-

dents whom wanted to test

their coordination while wearing

impairment goggles. Through

the event, we hoped to spread

awareness and promote wiser

decisions during the Spring Break vacation.

3/18 - A Home for a Hero:

“This is Bobby

whom we have

been looking for

since last year. We

finally found him

living near the cem-

etery and railroad

tracks. We intro-

duced Bobby to his

advocate and he

began the process

of getting housing. After just a few attempts, he finally

made it to his new home. Bobby was classified as chroni-

cally homeless and has been on and off the streets for the

past several years. He said he is too old to be on the

streets and wanted to live a quiet and peaceful life in his

own apartment. Bobby has reconnected with the VA

healthcare system and is going to be seeing doctors there

on a regular basis. His plans are to reconnect with his

peers and to be a better citizen while managing his medi-

cal issues.” - Raymond Gonzales, Outreach Specialist,

San Joaquin Valley Veterans (Fresno)

Veterans News

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Treatment and Rehabilitation News

3/12 - Community Volunteers Beautify

McKinney Plaza

Our McKinney Plaza Sober Living Environment for males

received some much needed beautification and gardening

thanks to the help of some awesome volunteers from the

Every Neighborhood Partnership! They helped weed a

planter on the side of the building and paint the gates in

front of it. Thank you to our generous volunteers for

taking the time to give back to their community and help

our men in recovery!

3/27 - MLK Receives an Easter Surprise:

We would like to thank Jenifer Alcorn and the amazing

members of her Team Jab Fitness Boot Camp fitness club

for their generous Easter donation of hygiene kits to our

Men's Unit at our MLK facility! On behalf of our programs

and our guys, thank you for "Uplifting the Human Spirit!"

3/22-24 - Spring Break Volunteer Week

We were thankful to have over 50 volunteers from Peo-

ples Church’s Student Ministry come and help beautify

our MLK Residential facility as part of Every Neighbor-

hood Partnership's Spring Break volunteer week! Over

the course of the three days, they cleaned up planters and

cleared the way for a walking path for our staff and clients

to enjoy while walking between our MLK Residential and

SOS programs. On behalf of our staff and those that we

serve, thank you to all of our amazing student volunteers!

3/24 - Nurturing Parenting Graduation:

Congratulations to our recent graduates of the 15 week

Nurturing Parenting class at our MLK Residential facility!

We are so proud of all that they have accomplished and

wish only the best for them and their families in the

future!

3/30 - Men to Men Parenting Graduation:

We would like to congratulate all of our graduates from

the Men to Men Parenting Course. We are proud of your

growth in our program and know that you will put to use

the tools that you have given for the benefit of you and

your loved ones. Congrats, guys! You earned it!

Criminal Justice News

CCTRP Stockton Prepares for Opening:

Our new Custody to Community Transitional Reentry

Program (CCTRP) for up to 50 female offenders in Stock-

ton is almost done with preparations for an opening in

early May. Looking great, team!

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Kudos!

April King, Director, STOP Area 1

Our STOP Area 1 Director, April King, was recently given an

award from her staff from both our Sacramento and Chico offic-

es in appreciation of her and the support that she gives them on

a daily basis. Each staff member pitched in to order the award.

As a way to say “Thank you!”, April immediately sent out an

online greeting card to all of her staff. Well earned, April!

Question of the Month: “What movie could you watch over and over?” “I could watch all of the Lord of the

Rings and all of the Hobbit over and

over again. Amazing books and

movies!” – Pamela Courson, Data

Entry Specialist, MLK Residential

“All of Harry Potter. I’m going to

the Universal studios tour in April

when it opens. “ – Barbara Varner,

Data Collection Specialist, MLK

Residential

“Sleepless in Seattle.” – Patricia

Dunne, Veteran Advocate, San

Joaquin Valley Veterans (Fresno)

“Ride Along and 21st Jump Street!!

I love comedies because like most

people, I love to laugh. I do watch

them over and over so much that

my husband hid them!”

– Patricia Lara, Quality

Assurance Assistant, STOP Area 3

“Practical Magic!” – Gabriela

McNiel, Director of Marketing,

Administration

“Walt Disney’s Fantasia.”

– Lynn Pimentel, Deputy

Administrator, Administration

“There are two ‘go to’ movies for

me: Jaws and The Bridge on the Riv-

er Kwai. A suspense/action movie

that keeps you on the edge of your

seat, never gets old, and an adven-

ture movie that memorializes the

perseverance and toughness of the

human spirit.” – Freddie Evans

CATC III, Senior Community Ser-

vice Specialist, STOP Area 3

“For me, it's hard to pick one movie

so I narrowed it down to two mov-

ies. The first one is The Devil

Wears Prada and then Mean Girls.

They are both movies that I can

watch and not have to think about

plot twists, or put too much

thought into them...mindless enter-

tainment.” – Erin Shelton,

Administrative Assistant, CCWF

“The Shawshank Redemption is eas-

ily the greatest movie that I’ve ever

seen. The storytelling is top notch,

there is a wide cast of intriguing

characters and its perspective on

life and friendship is just as powerful

every time that I watch it.”

- Michael Mygind, Special Pro-

jects Officer, Administration

Question of the Month for April: “Do you play an instrument?”

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Program Directory

Fresno Office

1505 N. Chestnut

Fresno, CA 93703

(559) 251-4800

Services: Management, Administra-

tive Support, Human Resources,

Accounting/Billing, Contract Compli-

ance, IT Support, Marketing/Media,

Procurement, Creative Services

Administration

The Living Room

901 E. Belmont

Fresno, CA 93701

(559) 486-1469

Services: Case Management, Hot

Meals Program, Housing Opportuni-

ties for Persons With AIDS

(HOPWA), Linkage to Testing and

Medical Care, Social Support

Education and Prevention

MLK Residential

2772 S. MLK Blvd

Fresno, CA 93706

(559) 265-4800

Services: Men’s/Women’s Short

Term Residential, Men’s/Women’s

Long-Term Residential, Residential

Treatment Program for Women and Children (M’ella), Resi-

dential Treatment Program for Men and Children: Papa Natal,

Residential Multi Service Center (RMSC)

Y-MAX Adolescent Program

410 E. 7th St,

Suite 5, 7, 9

Hanford, CA 93230

(559) 584-8100

Services: Adolescent Outpatient

Drug-Free Program

Treatment and Rehabilitation

Liberty Plaza (Sober Living)

4605 E. Liberty Fresno, CA 93702

(559) 237-3420 Ext. 20367

Services: Sober Living for Women

Bakersfield Residential

2901 S. H Street Bakersfield, CA

93304

(661) 398-4303

Services: Men’s Long-term Residen-

Belmont Health & Wellness

611 E. Belmont Fresno, CA 93701

(559) 237-3420

Services: Admissions, Adolescent

Outpatient Drug-Free Program,

Adult Outpatient Program,

Day Reporting Center (DRC)

McKinney Plaza (Sober Living)

1388 & 1398 E. Bulldog Ln

Fresno, CA 93710

(559) 237-3420 Ext. 20367

Services: Sober Living for Men

Crisis Psychiatric Response

Services (CPRS)

209 E. 7th St.

Madera, CA 93638

(559) 673-3508

Services: Mobile emergency

department response services,

Mental health services, crisis intervention, wellness planning, dis-

charge planning, Consumer centered and team based interven-

tions, Service coordination to adults and older adults receiving

services from designated hospital emergency departments within

Madera County who are deemed appropriate for an assessment

for involuntary psychiatric treatment pursuant to California Wel-

fare and Institutions Code Section 5150

Mental Health and Wellness

Supportive Overnight Stay

(SOS)

2772 S. MLK Blvd

Fresno, CA 93706

(559) 512-6802

Services: Provide a safe, supportive

environment to spend the night for

individuals who arrive at an ER with a mental health condition

needing services that don’t require a legal hold, Case Manage-

ment and transportation to ensure client engagement with

outpatient mental health services, Linkages to outpatient men-

tal health programs and supportive services such as housing,

food stamps, general assistance and SSI

6

Program Directory (Continued from Page 5)

Veterans Services

Merced

399 George Drive

BLDG. F

Merced, CA 95341

(209) 662-6073

Stockton

4545 Georgetown Pl.

Building D

Stockton, CA 95207

(209) 662-6073

Fresno

1617 E. Saginaw Way

Suite 102

Fresno, CA 93704

(559) 255-8838

San Joaquin Valley Veterans (SJVV)

Services: Drop-In and Ancillary Services, Supportive Services For Veteran Families (Services provided to Veterans through SSVF

include: Short-term case management, legal assistance, housing counseling services and placement assistance, financial planning ser-

vices, financial assistance for move in, eviction prevention, utilities, transportation, childcare and emergency supplies.)

Hanford

410 E. 7th St

Suite 5

Hanford, CA 93230

(559) 584-8100

HomeFront

3605 Eugenia

Fresno, CA 93725

(559) 266-1169

Services: Transitional housing for fe-

male Veterans with/without children for

up to two years, case management

Veterans Plaza

119 N. Calaveras

Fresno, CA 93721

(559) 241-8751

Services: Transitional housing

for male Veterans for up to

two years, case management

Housing Opportunities Housing Services

2443 S. Orange Fresno, CA 93725

(559) 241-8753

Services: Assistance with supportive housing to

families who are currently or chronically home-

less, Housing programs to assist individuals and

families with or without disabilities, Project LiftOff: Housing programs for low

income families with a disabled family member, Emergency Solutions Grant

(ESG), Fresno Madera Continuum of Care (FMCoC) Coordinated Entry

Multi-Agency Access

Program

MAP Point at the Pov

412 F Street Fresno, CA

93706

(559) 512-6777

Services: Coordinated intake/assessment pro-

cess connecting individuals facing housing, sub-

stance abuse, or mental illness challenges to

supportive services. Criminal Justice

Bakersfield

2901 S. H St.

Bakersfield, CA 93304

(661) 326-0485

Fresno

2772 S. MLK Blvd

Fresno, CA 93706

(559) 265-4800

Specialized Treatment for Optimized Programming (STOP)

Services: Case management, treatment placement in residential, outpatient and sober living, domestic violence education, voca-

tional training, pre-employment, job placement services and transportation from prison to treatment.

Chico

2585 Ceanothus Ave.

Suite 170

Chico, CA 95973

(530) 830-1180

Area 1 Area 3

Sacramento

1820 Tribute Rd.

Suite #K

Stockton, CA 93704

(916) 564-4400

7

Program Directory (Continued from Page 6)

7

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25 Cities Fresno

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Hashtags: #Westcareca #Sanjoaquinvalleyveterans #Fresnoaidswalk

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Calif. Men’s Colony

CA Highway 1

San Luis Obispo, CA 93409

(805) 547-7900 Ext. 7966

Re-Entry Hub

Services: Provides 250 female inmates where treatment services

are based on the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) principles

with a strong focus on continued treatment upon parole.

Folsom State Prison (FSP)

300 Prison Rd,

Represa, CA 95671

(916) 985-2561 Ext. 4086

Calif. State Prison

2100 Peabody Rd.

Vacaville, CA 95687

(707) 451-0182

Stockton - Opening soon

1609 N. Wilson Way

Stockton, CA 95205

Custody to Community Transitional Reentry

Program (CCTRP)

Services: Provides treatment services to female inmates (83 in San Die-

go, 50 in Stockton) who have a minimum of 45 day and a maximum of 2

years left on their sentence. We provide an array of gender responsive

trauma informed services including substance abuse, mental health, do-

mestic violence, education, vocational and employment readiness.

Long Term Offender Program (LTOP) - Women’s

Services: A cognitive based program that includes substance

abuse treatment specifically structured for long-term offend-

ers who will not be released in the near future.

Central Calif. Women’s

Facility (CCWF)

23370 Road 22

Chowchilla, CA 93610

(559) 665-1408

San Diego

3050 Armstrong St.

San Diego, CA 92111

(619) 359-8266

Long Term Offender Program (LTOP) - Men’s

Services: Serves Long Term Male Offenders who will

not be released in the near future. Provides access to

cognitive behavior therapy programs, substance abuse,

criminal thinking, anger management and family rela-

tionships.

Criminal Justice (Continued)