CASA LATINA, Washtenaw County’s first and only Latino community center, has appointed a new, volunteer executive director after a lack of funding prompted the organization’s founding executive director to temporarily step down. The move converts Casa Latina to an all-volunteer organization and leaves its future beyond 2015 unclear.

Charo Ledón, Casa Latina’s founding Executive Director who has worked without compensation for more than two years, has taken a leave of absence until funding is available to support her work with the organization. Carrie Rheingans, who co-founded Casa Latina in 2010 with Ledón and other Latino community leaders, will serve as part-time Interim Executive Director until December 31. Rheingans has served as volunteer staff since 2010.

“What message does it show the Latino community that their leader is working for free? We don’t want Latinos to believe that they shouldn’t receive fair compensation for their hard work, so I’m stepping down until we’ve secured sufficient funding,” explains Ledón. “I’ve been working multiple paid jobs to make ends meet, and it just isn’t sustainable, including for my health. I need to take time to get back to optimal health.”

Casa Latina’s Board of Directors will decide in early 2015 whether to close Casa Latina’s doors or continue providing services across the community, not only directly to Latinos themselves, but also to those who serve Latinos.

“I’m working with the board on a six-month, short-term strategy to set Casa Latina on stable ground for the beginning of 2015,” says Rheingans. “We’ve focused on foundational work over the last few months: developing our first strategic plan, a comprehensive fundraising plan, and refining our bylaws and other policies. It’s time to build on that foundation and move the organization forward.”

Since April 2012, Casa Latina has offered drop-in office hours three days a week   and provided information and referral services – in Spanish – for more than 2,000 individuals. Casa Latina also manages the only locally-based Spanish-language communication within the county: a text message service that alerts community members of school closings and other important community activities. This work has only been partially funded over Casa Latina’s three-year existence.

Casa Latina has received approximately $20,000 over 3.5 years for programs, services, and organizational capacity development from area funders (Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation, United Way of Washtenaw County, Michigan Benefits Access Program), as partners with other funded entities (Washtenaw County Public Health Department), and donations (Zingerman’s Community of Businesses, Domino’s, and individual donations).

“We have applied to a variety of funding sources for program grants, but without strong local data about the Latino community we serve, it has been difficult to secure funding,” explains Rheingans. “We also need to do a better job working with local businesses and others with an interest in the Latino community here.”

Casa Latina has spent the last year and a half addressing the missing data issue in a partnership with the Washtenaw County Public Health Department and the University of Michigan School of Public Health. The Encuesta Buenos Vecinos, or Good Neighbors Survey, is a community-engaged survey of more than 500 Latino residents of Washtenaw County. The team, including community members, is now sharing the results across the community.

For this project, the partners secured nearly $140,000, of which only part funds Ledon’s involvement. Ledón represents Casa Latina in the partnership and will continue this role until the project’s completion.

“This data is just what we needed to strengthen our program proposals and better position the organization to successfully secure grant funding moving forward. Now we’ve got our instructions from the community about what programs and services we should be offering,” says Ledón.

“Our focus over the rest of 2014 will be to draft funding proposals using the Encuesta Buenos Vecinos data, mostly in partnership with relevant organizations and agencies,” states Rheingans, who will be not only writing many of the proposals, but also training Casa Latina board members and volunteers in grant writing in an effort to increase the chance that multiple proposals will be funded.

“We’re also interested in making stronger community ties throughout Washtenaw County as well, with businesses and organizations that serve local Latinos,” adds Rheingans.

Casa Latina is the first and only Latino community center in Washtenaw County, Michigan. Casa Latina advances, promotes, and supports the full participation of Latinos in the Washtenaw County Area through a spectrum of relevant programs and services. Casa Latina was founded in 2010.