Santa Maria Hostel

ADDICTION, RECOVERY, HOUSING, PREVENTION AND INTERVENTION PROGRAMS

REQUEST SERVICES

Impact100 awards 100k Grant to Santa Maria

by

We are very excited to announce that last night Santa Maria was one of the two organizations selected by Impact100 to receive a $100,000 grant award. This award will allow us to bring child and family-centered design to our campus to better promote early childhood brain development and stronger maternal-child connections for our families.

We are also very much looking forward to engaging with all the members of Impact100 Houston throughout the year.

Impact100 Houston is a dynamic women’s organization that strives to make a sustainable impact in Harris County one transformational grant at a time.

 

 

Join Rev. Patrick Miller on his 100th Ride, to benefit Santa Maria

by

WE ARE HONORED TO PARTNER WITH REVEREND PATRICK MILLER FROM ST. MARK’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH TO CELEBRATE HIS 100TH INDOOR CYCLING RIDE.

We are very excited and hope you can join the celebration!

November 12th 

11:15AM 

RIDE Indoor Cycling 

3837 Bellaire Blvd. Houston, Tx 77025

There are only 38 available spots to cycle along with Rev. Miller, and a $100 minimum donation is requested.

RSVP To RIDE with Rev. Miler

Donate Here to RIDE with Rev. Miller

If you are not a cyclist, and still wish to donate in Honor of Rev. Miller, please use the link above, and make a note your gift is in his honor. If you, only wish to donate, no need to RSVP.

We are very much looking forward to seeing you on November 12!

 

The mission of Santa Maria is to empower women and their families to lead healthy, successful, productive, and self-fulfilling lives.

Welcome Rachael Wright, our new Chief Development and Communications Officer

by

We are very excited to welcome Rachael Wright as the new Chief Development and Communications Officer at Santa Maria Hostel. Rachael will be responsible for implementing all aspects of fundraising including donor relations, special events, volunteer management, public relations and communications. She has been in the field of fund-development and volunteer coordination for more than twenty years.

Rachael began her career working with arts and cultural institutions in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Since relocating to Houston in 2006, she has also worked with humanitarian and healthcare organizations via HeartGift Foundation and Habitat for Humanity Northwest Harris County. Rachael is excited to join the Santa Maria team and looks forward to connecting community resources to support our mission.

If you are interested in giving to Santa Maria, hosting a fundraising event or participating in our spring RISE Picnic for Recovery feel free to contact her at rwright@santamariahostel.org

 

ANGEL – Intersection Between Mental Health and Addiction

by

With a click of a button, you can change a family’s life.

Make a Gift Here or Text GIVE to (713)715-1435

After maintaining sobriety for several years, Angel moved from her Houston home base to Galveston, away from her recovery support. Knowing she needed mental health assistance, she attempted to get prescribed medication from a community resource. Without coordination and despite her past, she was given a drug in the same family as one of her former drugs of choice and a cocktail of other prescriptions. She was over-medicated and all she wanted to do was sleep, 18 hours a day.

She quickly lost her job, her home, and her children and spiraled back to the streets. For the next three and a half years, she lived in hotels and cars and quickly accumulated traffic violations and finally, a charge of possession that triggered criminal justice involvement. She was alone and miserable.

Facing prison, she chose the alternative and again turned to treatment. Angel began the slow process of coming back to herself, in the care of her team at Santa Maria. This time, she found integrated treatment that addressed both her substance use disorder and her mental health issues. Like almost 65% of her peers in treatment, she learned that her life would not be stabilized without balancing both. She had the benefit of a mental health counselor, who was part of her treatment team at Santa Maria. This counselor worked to monitor her medications but also to train Angel in a healthy lifestyle by creating habits that allowed her to establish routines in four key areas: community, health, purpose, and home. She began to slow down and practice gratitude, household organization and time for self-care. These simple, yet essential tools, were incorporated into her daily life. Other SMH team members rallied to her assistance and she grew strong.

Little by little her life improved. She reunified with her children and found an incredible career path. She is now part of a four-person team with the UT Health Heroes Opioid Outpatient Program. She serves a community of those trapped in desperate opioid use, giving the same hope and advice that was given to her.

 

BECAUSE OF YOU, WE CAN FORM THE FOUNDATION OF OUR RECOVERY COMMUNITY TOGETHER

You are the hero of our stories, for it is because of your support we have the resources to reach out and form the foundation of our recovery community. Please consider a gift today and be a part of building and restoring the lives of women and families in our community. 

Be assured that your gift will be put to good use immediately, so that every woman has access to the support they need to thrive. Thank you for your generous and caring spirit.

LAURA AND BELLA – a Two Generation Approach

by

Laura entered Santa Maria on July 4, pregnant, making a decision that she would break her addiction and bring a healthy baby into this world. Drug and alcohol were all she knew as a child, as her mother had been active in her addiction throughout this time. As Laura matured, she continued the pattern. She had lost everything to drugs, but she wasn’t willing to lose this child.

Laura was one of the first participants of the newly designed Ben Taub MPAT Clinic, an integrated prenatal clinic for pregnant and postpartum mothers with substance-use disorders. With the MPAT Clinic, Laura had a full team supporting her, including OB, psychiatry, nursing, social work, and her peer support specialist, Santa Maria recovery coach Michelle Hansford. This clinic, created through a partnership of Baylor College of Medicine, Harris Health, and Santa Maria, was designed to improve maternal and infant health outcomes by embracing every mother with respect and understanding, reducing the stigma attached with substance-use disorder so often found in healthcare settings, and improving access to integrated services that encompassed needs outside the traditional healthcare field such as transportation and housing.

Laura’s prenatal care was first rate, and her medication assisted treatment (MAT) was closely monitored and supported. At Santa Maria’s Jacquelyn House, she found herself in the company of many other women who had lived parts of her story, and she began to forgive herself for the choices she made. She started a life-long journey of recovery.

Her beautiful daughter, Bella, was born prematurely, and for the first month of life, Laura’s daily routine included a morning and afternoon trip to the hospital as well as the daily trip to the medication assisted treatment clinic for her medication for opioid use disorder. Santa Maria’s recovery coach and parent coach supported her throughout, providing emotional support, parent coaching, and tangible resources. Soon, the baby was healthy enough to come home.

Two years later, Bella is a charming toddler, full of smiles and quick with her words. She giggles when her mom calls her a “silly goose.” The strong connection between mother and child is evident.

 

BECAUSE OF YOU, WE CAN FORM THE FOUNDATION OF OUR RECOVERY COMMUNITY TOGETHER

You are the hero of our stories, for it is because of your support we have the resources to reach out and form the foundation of our recovery community. Please consider a gift today and be a part of building and restoring the lives of women and families in our community. 

Be assured that your gift will be put to good use immediately, so that every woman has access to the support they need to thrive. Thank you for your generous and caring spirit.

THE FLORES FAMILY – Strengthening Families Program

by

With a click of a button, you can change a family’s life.

Make a Gift Here or Text GIVE to (713)715-1435

“We came to this country to provide a better future for our children,” says mother, Nadia. “We want to adapt and learn the culture here, but mostly, we want to preserve our family bond.” Realizing that her children would need support navigating adolescence, she was drawn to a workshop outlined in a pamphlet that their elementary school in Aldine ISD sent home. The content of the family workshops was appealing, and she thought the course, available by Zoom, was a great opportunity to work on her family’s resilience. Nadia had also been hearing about the importance of family communication in her church.

She was met with enthusiasm from her daughters Nicole and Natalie, ages 8 and 10, and resistance from her 15-year-old son, Noe. She signed up anyway and the family began the 10-week course called Strengthening Families. They were provided with a manual, daily exercises and practices that added simple routines in their life. After the first two sessions, happily, her son decided he wanted to join in the class. The course was led by instructor, Luz Mosquera (SMH prevention staff member). Very soon, the family began to see positive changes in their interactions. They began holding a weekly family dinner and meeting each week. Their conversations led them to the understanding that they were all part of a team that needed to stay connected. Especially impactful, their honesty around drugs and alcohol led the family to a higher level of consciousness of responsibility and confidence knowing that they were there for each other.

Luz visited their home and made sure they had everything they needed to be successful. Her kindness and care was apparent and touching. Nadia says, “This was really a training for school, for social situations and real life. I see more leadership, confidence and participation in school from all of my children. I feel grateful that my son comes home and openly talks with me about some of the difficult things in his day. I have learned to listen without judgment, only support.”

“We are a community struggling with different issues and I have learned a new approach to know how to start and lead a conversation to discuss these things. I have also learned to make better decisions about consequences and discipline that keep the communication lines open,” shares Nadia.

BECAUSE OF YOU, WE CAN FORM THE FOUNDATION OF OUR RECOVERY COMMUNITY TOGETHER

You are the hero of our stories, for it is because of your support we have the resources to reach out and form the foundation of our recovery community. Please consider a gift today and be a part of building and restoring the lives of women and families in our community. 

Be assured that your gift will be put to good use immediately, so that every woman has access to the support they need to thrive. Thank you for your generous and caring spirit.

KERRI AND BEAUX – Family Healing and Reunification

by

With a click of a button, you can change a family’s life.

Make a Gift Here or Text GIVE to (713)715-1435

Kerri was born in Marble Falls, Texas. Although she lived in this beautiful small town, her childhood was anything but idyllic. Her father lost custody of her at the age of 2, and she was sent to live with her mother, a woman struggling with a meth addiction. Soon after, her father took his own life. Kerri’s early years were tumultuous, and she was often neglected. 

As a young adult Kerri took her mother’s path and become involved with alcohol and drugs. This life left her vulnerable to trauma and violence. Beaux, her pride and joy, was born into these unsafe surroundings. Beaux’s father was physically abusive and violent with Kerri for years. She was not providing a safe home for Beaux to grow up and she knew it, so she got away to protect her son. 

However, she could not find a safe and stable living arrangement. This resulted in her first case with CPS. Kerri was lost as to how to navigate the child welfare system and although she got her son back temporarily, it did not last. She was soon arrested for intoxication and child endangerment. Beaux was placed in foster care. 

Kerri faced three years of probation or the offer to be placed in treatment to start rebuilding a life in recovery. Kerri made the choice of recovery. She chose Santa Maria to restore her life. 

Kerri participated in her first substance use and trauma treatment alone at Jacquelyn House. There she met Tommy Austin, our court liaison, who offered her assistance in navigating her case with the possibility of regaining custody. Kerri says, “Tommy said that I was someone who was smart, put together and all I needed to do was learn how to talk to those making the decisions and do all they asked to get my son back. He gave me hope and promised to work with me.” 

Tommy made sure Kerri was prepared to advocate for herself. She requested an additional stay at our Bonita House where Beaux could live with her under supervision. Thankfully, she was allowed temporary custody of her son. She began parenting Beaux, learning to be a good mom and to include recovery basics in their lives. For her next step, Kerri chose to live in Santa Maria’s recovery housing which provided continued support for the family’s journey through individualized case management. 

Tommy continued to guide her, now including Beaux in the counseling. Soon, Kerri was awarded full custody of Beaux. “Without Tommy there to show me how, that would have never happened,” says Kerri. “I would have given up long before, thinking that Beaux would be better off without me.” 

Says Kerri today, “After I addressed my trauma and addiction, a light flicked back on in my life. I can be silly with my son, enjoy life and have dreams.” 

BECAUSE OF YOU, WE CAN FORM THE FOUNDATION OF OUR RECOVERY COMMUNITY TOGETHER

You are the hero of our stories, for it is because of your support we have the resources to reach out and form the foundation of our recovery community. Please consider a gift today and be a part of building and restoring the lives of women and families in our community. 

Be assured that your gift will be put to good use immediately, so that every woman has access to the support they need to thrive. Thank you for your generous and caring spirit.

2021 IMPACT REPORT -The Invincible Spirit – Making A Difference At Santa Maria

by

Dear Friends,

As the year draws to a close, there is a special feeling in the air. The holidays are upon us, and our thoughts are concentrated on celebrating with family and friends. Special feasts and traditions of gratitude are planned. We search for the perfect gifts to give our loved ones. We take time to stop and reflect on how blessed we are, even in the midst of the challenges and change life brings.

Often, in our gratitude, we think of those in our community that need help. Our Santa Maria supporters are filled with such generous thoughts. You remember our work and our participants with gifts and good wishes. Our families depend on your kindness to make their own holidays brighter and to reveal a better way forward. 

For 65 years, Santa Maria has supported and empowered Houston’s families to live successfully in recovery and reach their full potential. We wanted you to meet some of these wonderful people, if only briefly. Inside of our 2121 Impact Report you will find four inspirational stories of transformation. We believe you will be inspired by their invincible spirits and hope you will be moved to be a part of offering others the chance to make their own recovery journey.

We can’t do this without you! We need your support to continue the work of rebuilding lives. Please consider a gift of any size to show that you believe in the power of our recovery community. 

We will immediately put your gift to work to provide critical treatment, housing and supportive services to restore families and place them on the road to long term stability and success. Your support will provide hope and healing to thousands of women and family members in the coming year.

Thank you for helping us to achieve our mission to empower women and their families to lead healthy, successful, productive and self-fulfilling lives.

With gratitude,

Nadine Scamp

Chief Executive Officer

Ways To GIVE:

Give Online Here

Text GIVE to (713)715-1435

 

2605 Parker Road
Houston, TX 77093
tel 713.691.0900
fx 713.691.0910
REQUEST SERVICES DONATE TODAY

OUR MISSION

The mission of Santa Maria Hostel is to empower women and their families to lead healthy, successful, productive and self-fulfilling lives.

Santa Maria Hostel