Welcome to the CASRA Newsletter

In this issue:

• Registration for the first session of the CASRA Learning Series is now open!
• Stop pathologizing ordinary life
• New model for housing - without federal funding
• This type of compassion brings us the most benefit

Enjoy!

If you have news you would like to share or a colleague you would like to spotlight because of the great work they do or just because they are a great person or both, let us know by contacting joe@casra.org.

A benefit of membership in CASRA is receiving four hours of training for your staff. For more information, please contact joe@casra.org

If you are a CASRA member agency and would like to advertise your learning opportunity, training or event for the benefit of other CASRA member agencies, please contact us at events@casra.org.
There are a few guidelines:
-You are a CASRA Member Agency
-Your event is free of charge
and, as a reminder the Newsletter is published on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of the month

A Photo Gallery now resides on the EVENTS page of the CASRA website and currently consists of albums of the 2024 Spring and the 2025 Fall CASRA Gatherings. We plan on adding more albums in the future.

If you have photos of your agency's events you would like to share with other CASRA members, contact joe@casra.org.

To view the current albums in the Photo Gallery, CLICK HERE.

The  CASRA Learning Library and its contents are free to CASRA member organizations and their staff. The Library is located in the Member Portal on the CASRA website here. More detailed instructions on how to access and use the Library can also be found on the CASRA website when logged on the Portal.

Our hope is that the Library's offerings will provide learning opportunities that will serve as part of CASRA agencies' onboarding processes for new staff, as well as be a resource of Recovery oriented values and practices for all staff. 

Access to the Learning Library is currently limited to CASRA member agencies and their staff. We hope to expand availability in the future.

For questions and more information contact Joe Ruiz - joe@casra.org.

Our member agencies are continually looking for new employees or volunteers to join their workforce.

To see current openings and find out additional information about CASRA Member Agencies, please click below.

CASRA facilitates a number of support groups for people working at CASRA member agencies. The support groups provide people working in similar roles opportunities to share experiences, information, and challenges. They meet monthly for approximantely one hour. for more information contact the person listed for each group.

Social Rehabilitation Facilities (SRF)
Meets: First Tuesday of the month at 1 PM

Human Resources
Meets: First Thursday of the month at 11 AM

Employment/Vocational Rehabilitation Services
Meets: First Thursday of the month at 3 PM

For information regarding any of the above groups contact:
Chad Costello, chad@casra.org

Wellness Services (Well Talk)
The Wellness Services support group is now online. For more info contact Joe Ruiz, joe@casra.org

CASRA is a statewide organization of private, not-for-profit, public benefit corporations that serve clients of the California public mental health system.

Member agencies provide a variety of services that are designed to enhance the quality of life and community participation of youth, adults and older adults living with challenging mental health issues. Read more

The California Association of Social Rehabilitation Agencies

Mailing Address:
3350 E. 7th Street, #509
Long Beach, CA 90804

Email: casra@casra.org

Phone: (562) 343-2621

To reach us: use our Contact Form

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN!

Two Paths:
Psychiatric Rehabilitation
and the
Consumer/Lived Experience Movement

October 7, 2026
10:00 AM to 12:00 PM (PDT)

The history of psychiatric rehabilitation and the consumer/lived experience movement represents two distinct but increasingly interconnected paths toward recovery, self-determination, and community inclusion. This presentation traces the parallel development of these movements—from institutional care and deinstitutionalization through disability rights, recovery, peer support, and lived experience leadership. 

For More Information and to Register
CLICK HERE

Stop Pathologizing Ordinary Life

From NY Times
Opinion by Clay Routledge, July 26, 2026

Americans are more focused on mental health today than at any other point in our history. Public health campaigns urge us to check in on our feelings and talk openly about our struggles. Schools have adopted mental health curriculums. Employers offer mental health days. There are thousands of mental health and wellness apps.

Yet our mental health appears to be getting worse. Over the past several decades, the percentage of Americans who report being in poor mental health has been rising. Over half of U.S. doctors surveyed in 2023 reported a decline in their patients’ mental health. That same year, more than three-quarters of companies reported rising mental health concerns among their work forces.

Could our preoccupation with mental health be part of the problem? Read More

A New Model for Housing — Without Federal Funding

As Federal Funding Wavers, This Charlotte-Based Approach Covers Move-in Costs and Gives Landlords a Partner They Can Call

From Invisible People
By Robert Davis, September 15, 2026

More than 750 people who were homeless in North Carolina now have homes thanks to a new model that works without taking money from the federal government.

Lotus Campaign, a nonprofit based in Charlotte, North Carolina, has developed a model that supports both people seeking housing and real estate professionals who build the housing people need. The model helps people who are homeless overcome barriers to housing by providing cash for renter’s insurance, application fees, and security deposits. People housed through this program are also connected with wraparound services from local providers. Landlords and real estate developers benefit from having someone they can call when issues come up.

Since Lotus was launched in 2018, more than 750 people in Charlotte and Raleigh have found homes through the model. On top of that, 90% of people remained housed after their first year, and less than 5% returned to homelessness. All of that has happened without a dollar of federal funding, according to Beth Silverman, Lotus’ executive director.

“This is not easy by any means,” Silverman told Invisible People. “But it works.” Read More

This Type of Compassion Brings Us the Most Benefit, Study Shows

Research Suggests That Having Self-Compassion Can Have More Impact on Your Mental Health Than You Might Think

From Washington Post
By Sidney Page, September 16, 2026

Studies have long suggested that helping others can make us feel happier, and this extends to caring about animals too — as anyone who volunteers can attest.

But a new study about compassion offers a window into how it relates to mental health, and it turns out that one type of compassion has more impact than you might think: How we care about and treat ourselves.

“What came out of the study is that if someone reported high compassion for others but low compassion for themselves, they tended to have anxiety, depression and low well-being,” said Bassam Khoury, lead researcher in the study and clinical psychologist and professor at McGill University in Canada. Read More

If you or someone you know is considering suicide or self-harm, there are resources available to provide free and confidential support. Call 988 or the The Trevor Project at 1-866-488-7386 for LGBTQ young people.

CBHA 2026 Whole System Care Conference
September 30 — _October 2, 2026
The Westin Rancho Mirage Golf Resort & Spa

The 2026 Whole System Health Conference is co-hosted by the California Behavioral Health Association and California Hospital Association. This dynamic conference convenes federal leaders, elected officials, behavioral health agency teams, county representatives, people with lived experience, and statewide advocacy partners for a powerful, solutions focused gathering.

For more information and to register, Click Here

Project Return Peer Support Network (PRPSN) Provides certified WRAP training

CASRA member agency Project Return Peer Support Network (PRPSN) is now a licensed Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP). PRPSN's Training Institute is now a leading provider of WRAP Seminars across the West Coast, helping individuals and organizations build wellness tools that foster hope, personal responsibility, and empowerment.

 For more information or to schedule a WRAP Seminar, please contact PRPSN's Training Coordinator, Gustavo Limas at glimas@prpsn.org.

In recognition of
Suicide Prevention Month

Suicide is not a weakness. It is not selfish. It’s the final symptom of a mind carrying far more than it was meant to hold, a weight that became too heavy, too lonely, too unspoken.

It’s not about failing to be strong. It’s about pain that went unseen, untreated or misunderstood. If you’ve never stood on that edge, try not to judge what you haven’t had to survive.

Show compassion. Show care. So many people are fighting silent battles you’ll never see and what they need most isn’t advice or correction. It’s empathy, patience and understanding.

"Your are enough."
"The world is a better place with you in it."