Monthly Update
 
 
Nearly 60 million U.S. Hispanics trace their heritage to Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America and to Spain, each with distinct demographic and economic profiles. Here are key facts about the people who make up the 15 largest U.S. Hispanic origin groups.  
Thank you Jorge

 
As he prepares to step down from his role at Casa, on November 1, the staff and Board of Directors would like to acknowledge and thank Jorge Riopedre and his nine years of service to this organization. 
 
We will be hosting an open house reception in Jorge's honor on October 30th, from 4pm-7pm in Casa de Salud's Multi-Purpose room.
 
Share your Story

In preparation for Casa de Salud's 10th anniversary, we are collecting stories about how Casa has touched people's lives.
 
Do you have a story to share? Click through to privately submit your story in English or in Spanish.
Casa in the News

Kaiser Health news recently published an article about access to Medicaid. This story featured a Casa patient, and an interview with our President, Jorge Riopedre.

You can read it here.
Patient Profile
 
While housing assistance is not an issue that GUIA Program typically deals with, in mid-August of this year the team began serving a patient experiencing homelessness. 
Over the course of a month, the patient worked with several GUIA case managers who advocated extensively for the patient, making approximately 40 phone calls to myriad agencies and shelters.
 
On September 6, a Friday, the patient had run out of options. They had been staying at a hotel but were forced to check out due to finances. The patient did not have a safe place to stay over the weekend.
 
That day, one of the case managers worked with the patient for hours, making calls to new shelters and following up on calls made in the preceding weeks. As the day was ending, the case manager successfully connected the patient to a shelter where they could safely stay for the weekend.
 
In a final effort to ensure the patient's transition was as easy as possible, UberHealth was used to secure safe transportation to the shelter. 
This case illustrates a key tenet of the GUIA Program's philosophy: any variety of factors or life experiences can impact a patient's health. It also provides another example of the tenacity of the GUIA case managers' advocacy on behalf of Casa de Salud's patients.
Volunteer Spotlight
    
This month we highlight Matt Kennedy, a physical therapist who has been volunteering with Casa for almost two years. 
 
Matt has lived in St. Louis off and on since he came for college in 1999. He started volunteering at Casa when he most recently returned in 2017. 

Matt Kennedy
 
After ten years of working in outpatient orthopedic and home health settings, Matt is  glad to be able to bring his experience to our patients who need physical therapy.   
 
On discussing his volunteer experience, Matt says, "Most times I can help patients find some immediate relief for their condition, but then I also  help them learn how to best care for themselves. It is invaluable for patients to learn how to reclaim some control over their symptoms and recovery, and I'm happy to be here to help them do that."
 
We're very grateful to Matt and the other volunteer physical therapists that allow us to offer this service - one that is often inaccessible to uninsured patients.
 
Thank you, Matt!
Supporting Casa
    
We are very thankful to St. Luke's Hospital   for their generous donation to Casa de Salud this month.

You can mail a check to our office at 3200 Chouteau Avenue, St. Louis, 63103. You can give online through our website .
 
Your generosity makes Casa de Salud the premier resource for affordable and quality care for the foreign-born community in the St. Louis region!
Watch Our Video!
 
Casa de Salud - Compassionate Path to Wellness 
Welcome Andrés, Kevin, Rosemary, and Maurico
 
Casa welcomes four new staff members this month. Andrés Nieto is a Medical Assistant in the Clinic, Kevin Gomez is our new Volunteer Coordinator, Rosemary Hamlin takes over as our Clinic Lead Nurse, and Mauricio  Sosa Cárdenas joins GUIA as a Case Manager.

Andrés Nieto

Andrés  is originally from Colombia and is currently a college student at the University of Missouri-Saint Louis (UMSL). He is finishing his undergraduate degree in Biology. Andrés started at Casa as an intern interpreter and scribe. Outside of work, he is a car enthusiast and animal lover.

Kevin Gomez

Kevin is from St. Louis and is a graduate of UMSL, where he earned his international relations degree. He is very active in the Hispanic community in St. Louis and loves soccer, global cuisine and culture. 

His favorite type of taco is a taco de lengua but a good al pastor is a close second.  Kevin spent half of his time during college living in four countries: Turkey, Uruguay, Malta, and China. He recently came back from Malawi, Africa where he spent the last two years working for a public health organization focused on women's health. Whether abroad or at home, Kevin's focus is always to support marginalized people and help them access the resources that they need to live fulfilling lives. 

Rosemary Hamlin

Rosemary is a lifelong resident of St. Louis, and she brings over ten years of nursing experience to Casa. She has worked in a variety of healthcare settings and is excited about her new role.  

She has a seven year old son named Edward who just started second grade. Rosemary and Edward were recently able to travel to California to visit family, and they hope to travel more in the future.

Rosemary loves animals, Star Wars, and Harry Potter. She's a cat person but currently has a dog.

She is working towards earning her Holistic Nursing certification and hopes to complete it next summer.

Mauricio Sosa Cárdenas

Mauricio immigrated to the U.S when he was four years old, and grew up in Waukegan, Illinois. He attended Beloit College in Wisconsin where he studied Psychology, Spanish, and Human Rights, while also interning with medical interpreters for a few semesters.
 
He just moved to St. Louis in August and is very excited to work with the very talented GUIA team.
Provider Anniversaries
       
 
 
Casa is grateful to the  following medical providers, who celebrate their anniversaries with us this month:
 
Robert Hill, MD - 5 years
 
And a very special thanks to  
Karen Heath, MD
who has been a volunteer medical provider at Casa since our opening year in 2010. 
 
Casa is also thankful for its staff and recognizes the following anniversary:

Sharon Maes, Office Manager - 2 years
Letter from the President
       
This is my final letter as president of Casa. I want to use the opportunity to implore you, our friends and supporters, not only to continue supporting Casa but also, even more importantly, not to be complacent about what is at stake in this moment of history.
 
Ana Navarro, a Republican strategist and commentator, after watching the recent Democratic debate, said, "Regardless of who you support, there's three women, two African-Americans, one Asian, one Latino, one openly gay veteran, a child of Indian and Jamaican immigrants, a Jewish guy, a vegan, and even a couple of straight white guys...this is America."
 
She is absolutely correct. But there is a faction in the country that cannot abide by this. In response, there has been a dramatic rise in xenophobia and white nationalism, accompanied by a vilification of the foreign-born as "lazy" and "takers." Look no further than the recent changes in the "public charge" regulations to see this attitude taking hold within the government. Or look at the statement by the acting director of Citizenship and Immigration Services that Emma Lazarus' poem on the Statue of Liberty, the one that famously gives welcome to those who are tired and poor, was referring only to people coming from Europe.
 
The reality is that, by almost any metric, immigrants and refugees of all stripes in America tend to succeed. And while the Lazarus poem rightly stirs our hearts, it is also brilliantly self-interested. As the New York Times columnist Bret Stephens recently wrote, "People who have known tyranny tend to make the most of liberty. People who have experienced desperation usually make the most of opportunity. It's mainly those born to freedom who have the knack for squandering it."
 
That last line is aimed squarely at you and me. Let us not be the generation that squandered the promise of America. Among other things, that means standing up for the foreign-born, not just from some sense of altruism, but to defend the essence of our imperfect and yet glorious country. There is no greater American value than holding most dear those yearning to breathe free. It is our privilege, and our duty, to bequeath this value to posterity. Do not be silent. Do not be complacent. Be an American.
      
Jorge Riopedre 
President & CEO, Casa de Salud    
 

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