Anthony didn’t realize his trip to his uncle’s house to play with his cousins wasn’t going to be a typical visit. His father, after dropping him off, never returned again to pick him up. The five-year-old, taken in by his uncle and his family, became a member of the family and was treated the same as the other children in the house. Unfortunately, that treatment included physical abuse. Anthony was placed at Casa Pacifica Centers for Children & Families and lived in the Pre-K Cottage. He was bright-eyed, smart, agreeable, and displayed no negative behaviors from the trauma he had experienced. more...
Holly and her sisters were homeless before they found refuge at Casa Pacifica’s crisis-care emergency shelter. They lived in a car with their single mother who financial trouble. Holly’s grandparents helped out the family by moving them into their home, but Holly’s troubles weren’t over. Unfortunately, the family had an extensive history of sexual abuse. As the baby of the family at six years old, Holly was the easiest target for the abuse. She and her siblings also witnessed domestic violence in their grandparents’ home. When Holly arrived at Casa Pacifica, she experienced culture shock and had difficulty adapting. more...
Mona, age 11, arrived at Casa Pacifica from Ventura County Medical Center’s Children’s Unit. Her history included manipulation, tantrums, opposition, defiance, self-injurious behaviors and medical insubordination with her type I diabetes. She had been removed from her parents’ home due to their inability to monitor and maintain her diabetic condition, and had attended only two weeks of school the entire year. When Mona did not get her way, she would either refuse her insulin injections or refuse to eat once receiving her insulin, which would place her in a potentially life-threatening situation. more...
When three-year-old Robby arrived at Casa Pacifica, the only life he had known was instability. His parents, both wanted by the law for drug charges, had dragged the little boy from town to town. One day his mother couldn’t take it anymore and turned herself in to authorities. Robby was brought to Casa Pacifica and quickly assessed by staff. He had suffered severe neglect and was unable to speak. He lacked verbal skills, had speech delays and a very short attention span. He resorted to tantrums when trying to communicate and would scream at the top of his lungs when another child invaded his space. more...
Six-year-old Maria and her three-year-old sister Lupe came to Casa Pacifica after being removed from their grandmother’s home due to severe medical, social and emotional neglect. Their mother was an active substance abuser and had abandoned them; their father was an absent parent. “Maria had cerebral palsy and spastic quadriplegia and could barely walk,” said Debbie Pell, Casa Pacifica’s Shelter Care Director. “Both girls were admitted with head lice and dirty clothing, able to communicate only in Spanish.” more...
