A Place for All
“How would you describe Casa Chirilagua in one word?” This is the question I posed to our High school students during our last Casa to College meeting. One student said, “I can’t answer that because there are too many things.” It was an unexpected answer to me,...
Reconciliation in the Midst of Crisis
Last year’s Spring2ACTion was an event like none of the other’s I had participated in before. Due to COVID, all our usual events had to be canceled- no party with our students and families, no prayer room at the community center, no staying up until 1am with the team...
Getting Rooted
“Elisa, would you, la chica, and Anthony like to go on a socially-distant walk with me?” I asked. “Sure!” she replied, “At what time?” “What about after work? Around 6 pm.” “Awesome, see you there.” Elisa, her daughter “la chica”, Anthony, and I...
Encouraging Mentees to Become Self-Advocates
“My voice has power.” In the fall of 2018, Casa Chirilagua staff gathered to cast the five-year vision plan of the organization. What took place in our community center became a series of conversations to get the pulse of...
Flourishing in Spite of Obstacles
Imagine moving to a new country where you do not know how to speak the language and you’re starting 1st grade through a computer screen all by yourself in your home. That’s how Lucia* began her first year of school after her family recently immigrated from Guatemala....
We are a community of people “learning together to love our neighbors as ourselves” in a Latino neighborhood in Alexandria, Virginia.
As a faith-based Christian non-profit with a small staff and over 100 volunteers, we serve alongside more than 100 families and their children (1st-12th grades) each week through our community programs.