Sure Helpline requests funds from County to keep doors open in Calipatria
EL CENTRO – Sure Helpline Crisis Center requested financial support from the Imperial County Board of Supervisors, announcing that the institution is struggling to keep its offices open.
The 52-year-old institution currently serves as Imperial County’s only 24-hours a day, 7-days a week support service for those experiencing a crisis, said Sure Helpline Executive Director Margaret Sauza.
Sauza made her plea to the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, March 14, after her staff presented on the different services sure helpline provides the community.
“Our request is simple, we really need some help,” Sauza said.
Sure Helpline is dedicated providing a safe place for members of the community experiencing crisis by providing a number of services meant to promote mental health, stability and reducing of incidences of domestic and sexual violence.
Established in 1971, Sure Helpline has been providing critical outreach to disadvantaged communities like farmworkers, senior citizens, non-English speakers, young adults and others in need of preventative education and information on such diverse topics as healthy relationships, domestic violence awareness, and sexual assault awareness, according to their website.
“Our community outreach Sure Helpline Center also provides (Prison Rape Elimination Act) services to our local detention centers, prisons county jail and halfway house for victims of sexual assault work,” Johana Ramirez, Lead Advocate for Sure Helpline, said.
According to Sauza, the Sure Helpline staff has dwindled down recently, from originally having 20 staff members to only a dozen.
This reduction in staffing and funds is threatening Sure Helpline’s Calipatria office, which offers services not only to the City of Calipatria, but also some of Imperial County’s most underserved communities such as Niland, Bombay Beach, and Desert Shores.
Currently, Sure Helpline is being funded almost entirely through grants, with a very small amount coming from donations from Imperial Counties Continuum of Care funds, Sauza said.
While no proposals were made public the Tuesday meeting, Imperial County CEO Miguel Figueroa was able to confirm that there is a proposal that has been submitted to the county, though the date of that future meeting was not made public.
“I can confirm that I have received the proposal, and we will be discussing it in a future meeting,” Figueroa said.