{"id":45192,"date":"2026-06-01T08:59:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T13:59:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/?p=45192"},"modified":"2026-06-01T08:59:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-01T13:59:11","slug":"mental-health-awareness-is-something-all-of-us-must-champion-in-our-communities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/2026\/06\/01\/mental-health-awareness-is-something-all-of-us-must-champion-in-our-communities\/","title":{"rendered":"Mental Health Awareness is Something All of Us Must Champion in Our Communities"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.kb-image45192_4219c2-eb .kb-image-has-overlay:after{opacity:0.3;}<\/style>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-kadence-image kb-image45192_4219c2-eb\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"kb-img wp-image-32316\" srcset=\"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs.png 1920w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs-228x128.png 228w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs-500x281.png 500w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs-100x56.png 100w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs-1184x666.png 1184w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>As June begins and summer settles across Texas, children and families are adjusting to a major seasonal transition. For many young people, summer is a time filled with fun and freedom. But for children and youth in foster care, the change in routine can bring increased uncertainty, stress, and emotional challenges.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>During the school year, schools provide much more than education. For many children, school is a dependable source of meals, structure, social connection, emotional support, and stability. When summer arrives, those supports often disappear overnight. Children may face food insecurity, increased isolation, more screen time, and fewer opportunities for positive social interaction \u2014 all of which can negatively&nbsp;impact&nbsp;their mental health and emotional well-being.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For children in foster care, these challenges are often compounded by trauma. Children entering foster care&nbsp;frequently&nbsp;carry deep emotional wounds caused by abuse, neglect, family separation, and instability \u2013 changing homes and schools, being separated from everything they know. In fact,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncsl.org\/human-services\/mental-health-and-foster-care\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">studies show<\/a>&nbsp;that up to 80% of children in foster care experience significant mental health challenges, compared to approximately 20% of children in the general&nbsp;population. They&nbsp;struggle with anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, grief, and feelings of loneliness and isolation. In many cases, they&nbsp;don\u2019t&nbsp;have access to consistent support systems or adequate mental health resources.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite how common these experiences are, conversations around the mental health needs of children in foster care do not happen&nbsp;nearly enough. At Texas CASA, we believe it is critical to shine a light on these challenges and continue building awareness, compassion, and support for children and families who need it most.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is where CASA volunteers make an extraordinary difference.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>CASA volunteers play a critical role in the child welfare system by advocating for the best interests of children. They provide consistency in moments of uncertainty and ensure children\u2019s needs are seen and heard. CASA volunteers&nbsp;connect children and youth to the wraparound services they need, partnering with caregivers and caseworkers to schedule routine check-ups, specialist visits, and therapy sessions.&nbsp;Ultimately, they&nbsp;play a part in helping ensure their mental health needs&nbsp;don\u2019t&nbsp;fall through the cracks.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To help volunteers better support children who have experienced trauma, Texas CASA offers CASA volunteers a customized Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI\u00ae) training developed by the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/child.tcu.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Instituto Karyn Purvis para el Desarrollo Infantil<\/a>&nbsp;at TCU, which the Department of Family and Protective Services&nbsp;recognizes&nbsp;as the trauma-informed intervention model in child welfare. This specialized training equips volunteers with tools to better understand children\u2019s behaviors, build trust-based relationships, and respond with compassion and connection.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As we enter the summer months, stay connected and informed about resources available to children and families in need across Texas. Some helpful statewide resources include:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Texas 2-1-1: Dial 211 or visit\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.211texas.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">211texas.org<\/a>\u00a0for access to food\u00a0assistance, housing support, counseling services, and local community programs.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/squaremeals.org\/Programs\/Summer-Meal-Programs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Summer Meal Programs<\/a>: The Texas Department of Agriculture offers free summer meal sites for children and teens across the state.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/namitexas.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Texas<\/a>: Mental health education, support groups, and crisis resources for families and youth.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/tcmhcc.utsystem.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium<\/a>: Access to pediatric mental health resources and telehealth support.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bgca.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Boys &amp; Girls Clubs<\/a>\u00a0and local community centers: Safe summer programming, meals, mentorship, and enrichment activities for children and teens.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/988lifeline.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">988 Suicide &amp; Crisis Lifeline:<\/a>\u00a0Call or text 988 for immediate mental health and crisis support.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Mental health awareness is not just a conversation for professionals or policymakers \u2014 it is something all of us must champion in our communities. By listening, advocating, supporting families, and speaking openly about mental health, we can help ensure that children in foster care feel seen, valued, and supported.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thank you for standing with Texas CASA and for helping create brighter, healthier futures for children across our state.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With gratitude,&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-vertical is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-532d620d wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0\"><style>.wp-block-kadence-image.kb-image45192_247344-4e:not(.kb-specificity-added):not(.kb-extra-specificity-added) > figure{margin-bottom:0px;}.kb-image45192_247344-4e.kb-image-is-ratio-size, .kb-image45192_247344-4e .kb-image-is-ratio-size{max-width:248px;width:100%;}.wp-block-kadence-column > .kt-inside-inner-col > .kb-image45192_247344-4e.kb-image-is-ratio-size, .wp-block-kadence-column > .kt-inside-inner-col > .kb-image45192_247344-4e .kb-image-is-ratio-size{align-self:unset;}.kb-image45192_247344-4e figure{max-width:248px;}.kb-image45192_247344-4e .image-is-svg, .kb-image45192_247344-4e .image-is-svg img{width:100%;}.kb-image45192_247344-4e:not(.kb-image-is-ratio-size) .kb-img, .kb-image45192_247344-4e.kb-image-is-ratio-size{padding-bottom:0px;}.kb-image45192_247344-4e .kb-image-has-overlay:after{opacity:0.3;}<\/style>\n<div class=\"wp-block-kadence-image kb-image45192_247344-4e\"><figure class=\"alignleft size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"627\" height=\"283\" src=\"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/vicki-signature.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"kb-img wp-image-41959\" srcset=\"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/vicki-signature.jpg 627w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/vicki-signature-300x135.jpg 300w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/vicki-signature-228x103.jpg 228w, https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/vicki-signature-18x8.jpg 18w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 627px) 100vw, 627px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Vicki Spriggs, CEO de Texas CASA<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As June begins and summer settles across Texas, children and families are adjusting to a major seasonal transition. For many young people, summer is a time filled with fun and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":32317,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_tec_requires_first_save":true,"_gspb_post_css":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_tribe_blocks_recurrence_rules":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_description":"","_tribe_blocks_recurrence_exclusions":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[89,96,91],"tags":[],"topics":[],"class_list":["post-45192","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-casa-voice","category-from-the-ceo","category-news-updates"],"blocksy_meta":[],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":89,"label":"The CASA Voice"},{"value":96,"label":"From the CEO"},{"value":91,"label":"News &amp; Updates"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/texascasa.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/From_the_CEO_Vicki_Spriggs-1024x576.png",1024,576,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Kelly Clarke","author_link":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/author\/kclarke\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":89,"name":"The CASA Voice","slug":"casa-voice","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":89,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":91,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":89,"category_count":91,"category_description":"","cat_name":"The CASA Voice","category_nicename":"casa-voice","category_parent":0},{"term_id":96,"name":"From the CEO","slug":"from-the-ceo","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":96,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":15,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":96,"category_count":15,"category_description":"","cat_name":"From the CEO","category_nicename":"from-the-ceo","category_parent":0},{"term_id":91,"name":"News &amp; Updates","slug":"news-updates","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":91,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":38,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":91,"category_count":38,"category_description":"","cat_name":"News &amp; Updates","category_nicename":"news-updates","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45192","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/42"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45192"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45192\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32317"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45192"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45192"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45192"},{"taxonomy":"topics","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/texascasa.org\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topics?post=45192"}],"curies":[{"name":"wordpress","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}