Empowering neighbors through language

“On the first day I was nervous and happy to start learning and perfect my English,” reflects Felix as he remembers his first day as a student. He began learning English in our new classes last September. Now fast forward sixteen weeks and Felix is a proud graduate,...

Warm Christmas Celebration Memories

By Adriana Gómez Schellhaas   “I’ve been waiting for you!” I look over to see two people adorned in silly holiday attire. They are a friend and mother of one of my students calling out to me! After a few snaps of the shutter another voice chimes in, “I’d like a...

The Heart of Casa Club

By Teddi Beschel   This fall Casa Chirilagua expanded and relaunched our middle school program, Casa Club. Not only did we revamp the program, but I made my first appearance with Casa as the Youth Programs Coordinator. With a new program, new participants and...

Welcoming Hands

As a first grader walking into Kids Club for the first time, I can imagine our program might be a little overwhelming. You ride the bus to a new place for the first time and you walk in to a community center full of kids you don’t really know. It’s loud,...

How to Help Local Family Who Lost 3 Year Old

On the evening of Saturday, September 23, 2017, a 3-year old boy tragically lost his life when he was struck by a car on Executive Avenue in Alexandria, across the street from Casa Chirilagua. While they are not part of Casa programs, we are still grieving with the...