Karen Stanley, the president and CEO of CARITAS, the largest homeless services and recovery program in Central Virginia, has been with the nonprofit since 2000. Once a domestic violence coordinator for Chesterfield police, she has worked in both the private and public sector, but, Stanley says, “Nonprofit is definitely where my heart is.”
“United by our compassion, we help our most vulnerable neighbors break the cycles of homelessness and addiction to reclaim their dignity,” says Stanley, quoting CARITAS’ mission. The organization strives to embody those words with four programs — an emergency shelter, a furniture bank, a works program and a recovery program for those suffering from substance abuse.
As the COVID-19 pandemic hit Richmond, Stanley recognized the need to act fast for their underserved population. “It’s been crazy, but for the most part our folks have been kept safe and healthy,” she says. “It really puts things into perspective.”
After locking down the shelter and the recovery center, Stanley began to modify CARITAS’ operations, knowing that people would need more help than ever. Luckily, for the past three and a half years, she and her team have been working on a massive $28 million project, the CARITAS Center, a 150,000-square-foot space that will permanently house a recovery center and an emergency shelter for women, the furniture bank and work program, administrative offices, and 40 sober living apartments, all under one roof. The CARITAS Center is nearing completion, and they are looking forward to expanding their operations in the next couple of months. “My leadership style is very much bold — I’m a risk taker,” Stanley says. “My board is, too, and we made some really conscious decisions to make this happen.”
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