CASA GRANDE- Not asking for help when it is needed may be a matter of pride. It’s something that Mary Lou Rosales sees all the time.
Rosales is the executive director of Community Action Human Resources Agency, which will participate in a grand opening and ribbon cutting at 11 a.m. on Monday for a new center to aid the homeless in Casa Grande. She recalls seeing tears on people’s faces, even on grown men when they ask for help.
“We do what we can, and we help them in what they need at that time,” Rosales said.
She added that people may say that the community health center, Sun Life Family Health Center, is across town.
“Well, because they don’t want to go to a big building with lots of people,” Rosales said, “maybe this will be a more welcoming place.”
The CGHELPS Resource Center, which is located inside the Peart Center at 350 E. Sixth St., will be a one-stop place for not just those who are homeless, but those who are near homeless as well. Rosales said some may be individuals who don’t have the money to pay the rent because they got sick or lost their job, or individuals who can’t afford to pay the utilities that are a stipulation in the lease agreement.
“If someone lives in subsidized housing and they can’t pay their electricity, they could be evicted,” she said. “They are supposed to have all the services on.”
In addition to financial assistance, the site will offer an on-site nurse for basic medical care, an individualized case manager, GED and English classes, connections to job readiness and employment programs, behavioral health programs, and basic goods such as food, clothing, shoes and personal-hygiene products.
