From the Executive Director

It’s not unusual for some of the residents, clients and tenants of PLACES to make a trip downtown during the week to visit the executive staff here at PLACES. When they do, they often stop by my office just to say, “Hi.”

We enjoy these impromptu opportunities to touch base with each other because we know them, and they know us. So we take a few moments to chat about what they’ve been doing, how they’re feeling and the progress they’re making. We share a few stories. And when it’s time to go, they leave feeling respected – like a valued member of our family. They feel like people instead of diagnoses.

The respect we give our residents, clients and tenants – all with mental health disorders and some who have been homeless – is one of the many things I’m proud of here at PLACES, where we provide much more than just housing and supportive services. We serve people with dignity. We offer compassion. We care.

Because members of our staff spend so much quality time with our residents, clients and tenants, we have an extraordinary understanding of their unique needs. Many of these individuals make enormous strides toward recovery. And PLACES is always there – whether someone is enrolling in a treatment program, applying for a job, celebrating a birthday, preparing for surgery, enduring daily chemotherapy or grieving the death of a loved one.

Our reputation for going above and beyond is well known. That’s because we are willing to accept people with the most challenging mental health diagnoses who are often the most difficult to serve. Others may have given up on these individuals, abandoning them as hopeless cases with no chance of recovery. But at PLACES, we take time with them. We advocate for them. And sometimes we fight for them, just so they can maintain even the most basic of human rights.

I’m proud of so many other things that go on here at PLACES: our reputation throughout Montgomery County for providing the highest level of housing and supportive services to people with mental illness; the attentive care our devoted staff give day and night to those we serve; and the unrelenting focus of our committed and involved Board of Trustees, which considers first and foremost how every decision will affect the quality of life for our residents, clients and tenants.

Our staff and our board will not compromise the quality of the services PLACES is known for providing. It’s why we were founded in 1988. It’s the reason we are still here today. And it’s why we will continue to be here – long into the future.

Roy Craig
Executive Director
PLACES, Inc.