SAN ANTONIO — The City of San Antonio has invested in the lives of children within the welfare system, specifically foster youth between the ages of fourteen and twenty five years old. COSA gifted $950,000 for Project Launch which is an initiative between Jewish Family Service (JFS), CASA (Child Advocates San Antonio) and THRU Project.
The mission of the project is to offer consistent mental health therapy for those youth from the standpoint of having the same therapist from the beginning to the end of their journey.
"This idea came about from Angela White, the CEO of CASA,' said Jewish Family Service CEO Jennifer Regnier. ''We were having a conversation one day about the needs of mental health and how that needs to be treated as 'health'," she added. "If you or I go to a therapist we stay with the same one," said CASA CEO Angela White. "If my kids go to a therapist they stay with the same one. We can't retraumatize these children by having them tell their story again and again and again," she added.
"What we have seen over the last ten years is the frustration that our youth are experiencing by having to go through a revolving door of therapists," said THRU Project CEO Courtney Laverty.
The mission is simple through the partnership and that's simply getting foster youth to JFS to establish that therapist relationship, one they'll have through the early years of adulthood.
"We have our trusted advocates," said Angela. "We want those advocates to be saying this is the therapist for you. We'll get you there. We'll take you there. You can be on telehealth."
Jennifer told us the project plan enables any foster youth to meet their therapist and create a customized therapy plan for that individual person.
"They will follow them from CASA all the way through their journey with THRU Project and beyond to make sure they are set up for success," she said. "To provide consistent high quality mental health is like finding the last missing piece of the puzzle," said Courtney. "We are so excited because we know this is going to help our youth thrive."
Angela praised Bexar County and the city for being innovators with the project. "As a former foster child I get this. It is just heartfelt for me. I never knew we could make this happen," she said.
JFS, CASA and THRU are hoping this is only the beginning and that other funders and community partners will soon join the effort.
