Information Hub / BlogChrissy Tells Us the Story Behind Our Newest A Home Within Chapter!
Hello from the Happiest City in America! šāļøš»
My name is Chrissy Arlen, and Iām the Program Coordinator here at A Home Within. I get to work with my incredible colleagues on a variety of different projects, including volunteer recruitment, recognition, and retention; the client-clinician matching process; our rich Continuing Education program; our partner program with CASA; and launching some exciting new projects (read more below!). When Iām not working, I love to move (read: yoga, interval workouts, hiking, etc.), read, deepen my spiritual practice, watch horror films, and grab dinner and drinks with friends! Especially a fun gin cocktailā¦ But now back to work!
As I’m sure you know by now, we at A Home Within are spreading our roots… When our organization was founded nearly 30 years ago, our volunteers were located primarily in and around the Bay Area of California. Since then, we’ve grown to include over 20 chapters across 14 states. I’ve only been here for one year, but already in that short time I’ve witnessed the amazing launch of four new chapters in San Diego, the Greater Oregon area, the DMV area, and Rhode Island. This exciting growth in our community has been an inspiration to meāand now it’s my turn!
I’m absolutely thrilled to be launching a brand new chapter in my hometown of San Luis Obispo!
When I started working with A Home Within last August, I never thought I would be launching a new chapter on my own, but it has proven to be a major highlight of my time here so far. Having grown up in SLO and now living here again as an adult, you can imagine how personally meaningful and rewarding the experience of building this chapter has been for me. It’s exciting to bring something of my own professional endeavors to the town I hold close and relate to my home in a new way.
I’ve done extensive research on therapists in the area and have emailed hundreds of themāsome I know, some I don’t!āto tell them about the beautiful mission of A Home Within and invite them to join us. I’m thrilled to announce that we onboarded our very first SLO volunteer last month!
There’s still plenty of work to be done, and though I won’t lose momentum, there are easy ways you can help! If you know any therapists on Californiaās Central Coast, you can send them a link to our Info Video to learn more. You can also sign up for our newsletter to stay updated on our news and learn about different opportunities and events in our community. Or, by becoming a sustaining donor, you can help me identify a local Clinical Director or two, recruit additional volunteer clinicians, establish partnerships with local organizations, form local consultation groups, and eventually open up for SLO client referrals. I can’t wait to see our San Luis Obispo chapter take flight as a fully-fledged A Home Within chapter. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly here.