Crisis Pregnancy Shelter Completed in Orange, With Help From HomeAid

ORANGE — Construction was completed Thursday at Casa Teresa, a 12-bed crisis pregnancy shelter for expectant mothers who have no where else to turn.

Women can begin moving in two weeks into the 3,000-square-foot home on West Maple Avenue, where they will take classes on prenatal care, parenting and job training to help prepare them for motherhood, officials said.

“It’s like a dream come true,” said Jim Richeson, Casa Teresa’s executive director.

HomeAid Orange County, a nonprofit building organization, donated the $275,000 worth of materials and services to construct the new cottage, which replaced an 800-square-foot, five-bed facility. Built in dorm-like fashion, the new facility has six bedrooms, sleeping two women per room.

“It looks like a model home,” HomeAid Executive Director Mike Lennon said. “You really want the women to feel like they are cared about in a home environment, not an institution. It really helps boost self-esteem.”

Casa Teresa operates a 13-room, apartment-style facility next door to the shelter for the women to live in after they give birth. The average stay is about eight months, Richeson said.

“They are not just getting a roof over their head,” Lennon said. “It’s about making a life change.”

HomeAid will host a sock hop fund-raiser Saturday at which Richeson and Casa Teresa program director James Pugh each will receive a Rainbow of Hope Award for their leadership and dedication to helping Orange County’s homeless.

Information: (714) 553-9510.