Continuum of Care, Inc.’s mission is to enable people who are challenged with mental illness, intellectual disabilities, addiction, or homelessness to rebuild a meaningful life and thrive in the community.
History
Continuum of Care, Inc. started in 1966 with just 1 location.
Today, Continuum operates over 60 locations.
Continuum’s roots go back to 1966 with the development of The New Haven Halfway House, our first residential program for persons with mental illness, and one of the first transitional facilities in the country.
with the founders of the New Haven Halfway House:
(l-r) Charles Lidaz, PhD, Richard Glendon, MD,
and William Mace, PhD
The New Haven Halfway House is still serving persons with mental illness today but has transitioned to effectively meet the changing needs of a complex group of individuals who are the most fragile in our system—often experiencing chronic homelessness and substance addiction—and require 24-hour care and oversight.
These grass roots in the greater New Haven area laid the foundation for the development of a comprehensive array of
residential service options for persons challenged with mental illness and individuals with developmental disabilities.
Continuum remains devoted to helping many of the most vulnerable members of our community live full and productive lives. Each year we provide community-based residential, crisis and respite, case management and community support services to more than 2,000 individuals with mental illness, developmental disabilities, behavioral health issues, and/or substance abuse problems in various locations throughout Connecticut, with the goal of full and productive integration with the community. Most of the individuals that the agency services live below the poverty level. We serve a broad diverse population of people who are challenged with a myriad of complex issues and linked by the shared need for a continuum of care.
Thanks to our talented and committed staff and the effectiveness of our programs, Continuum has been enormously successful in achieving our goals. Yet, despite the efforts of hundreds of dedicated people, there are still individuals in our community whose needs are not met by government-funded or private
programs. The most vulnerable members of our population—the poor, the disabled and the mentally challenged—need more help than our state, our cities, our municipalities, or even individuals and families can provide. That is where Continuum, working together with our state, local officials, and community partners, helps bridge the gap between government and private support with less costly yet more effective services for the disabled and disadvantaged in our community. Currently, Continuum is housed in 56 locations scattered throughout Connecticut, with 3 additional programs that are not residential, but offer support to the community. All of our facilities are designed to enhance the physical appearance and blend into the neighborhoods where they are located. Over the past few years we have expanded into 14 more towns and cities and the number of persons we serve has grown by 700% over the past 12 years (12% year over year) —and we continue to grow.
This fast-paced expansion of our services led to a crippling need for space where we could train, better collaborate,
develop, and teach staff and clients so we can increase the depth of our services and grow our programs addressing these
needs. In 2016, we constructed and opened our new 30,000 square foot administrative office which is a tremendous help in enabling us to accomplish our goals.
The demand for our services continues to grow, as does our ever-expanding focus to serve some of the most vulnerable individuals in our community to live and flourish in community settings.