Long Term Case Management
A Success Story
Wynette* was celebrating her 24th birthday on Aug. 28, 2005 and had much for which to be thankful: She was engaged to be married, had her own apartment and car, and had just been promoted to Assistant Manager at her workplace. Less than 24 hours later she would be given 30 minutes notice to flee her Misssissippi home and Hurricane Katrina’s destruction, in fear of her life.
Wynette arrived in Austin unsure of her future. She struggled with depression and was unable to make contact with her family for nearly three months; it would be eight months before she was able to see them.
Connecting with Catholic Charities of Central Texas, Wynette was assigned a case manager, who guided her as she struggled to get her life back on track. He coached her to tackle one day at a time and, through his guidance, Wynette moved from lamenting the losses she incurred to begin thinking about short- and long-term goals.
Having a semester of college and management experience in the fast food business to her credit, Wynette decided to enroll in a “Job Ready” training program offered by Texas Work Source. She successfully completed the 10-month training and began an internship with the hopes of securing gainful employment in either her previous work field or using her new skills as a Medical Administrative Assistant / Billing Code Specialist. Apart from offering financial resources and encouragement, Wynette’s case manager helped her develop new levels of responsibility, respect and courtesy.
"Catholic Charities gave me food gift cards and Wal-Mart (education incentive) gift cards, helped with payment of my electrical bills, and always motivated me — like wanting to know of the progress that I was making in my training program. Today, I thank God for all the kind-hearted people I experienced in Austin and for all the ways he has blessed me in this new life — thanks to Catholic Charities."
* name has been changed
- Over night, I found myself in totally a new
environment. My life had no plans, no schedule
and no goals but for that day. Now my life is
changing for the better, little by little, as a result
of the effor ts of Catholic Charities.
— Wynette, a Hurricane Katrina evacuee