My Nonprofit Reviews

My first experience with CHOICE was in the late ninety’s when it still operated under the umbrella of a fiscal sponsor. At that time I understood only that the agency had a thrift shop. Consumers could frequent the shop as often as they liked and could take home donated clothes and toiletries for free. I later learned that the volunteers on staff were also available to assist any walk ins with document completion, applications for Medicaid and other government entitlements. The most impressive thing about the agency at that point was the tone of the office. Walk ins were treated with utter respect and kindness. No one was made to feel judged either due to their poverty or their mental illness. I learned later that CHOICE employed as volunteers only recipients of mental health services. What an idea! Though I know that "having a toothache doesn't make you a dentist" the idea of persons who too have been discriminated against and faced the obstacles set forth to discourage access to federal and local benefits helping others based on this shared experience, without judgment. This is invaluable. CHOICE today looks very different than it did back then. The agency now has full time staff members, program directors, a Deputy Director and an Executive Director. The agency provides 4 types of services: homeless outreach, case management, advocacy and suicide intervention skills training. The agency has grown by leaps and bounds since I first encountered CHOICE back in 1997. The one thing that remains the same is the caring with which all services are delivered.

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