Our Story
How It Started
The Engalla Hope Foundation (EHF) was founded by our family, after struggling with Schizophrenia for over a decade. Our son and brother, Brett, was diagnosed with schizophrenia 20 years ago
We were a “normal” family, husband, wife, four kids, good in school, involved with after-school activities, lots of “goals” for our kids. What we thought were developmental “gaps” were early signs of schizophrenia. By the time Brett was 18, our hope for a productive life vanished. We had lost our son to something else we did not understand.
Years of loneliness, confusion, disenfranchisement, and desperation, we were going nowhere and losing hope. In and out of hospitals, disabled, Brett’s life was being discarded, by society. Even worse, he was being discarded by us, sent to a group-home, because he could no longer live safely with us.
We discovered “tiers” of solutions for families that live with schizophrenia. The best was not attainable for most, we generalized our experiences into the following categories.
The continuum of care we encountered looked something like this:
- Intensive inpatient treatment, followed by discharge
- Sustainable living environments with onsite clinicians to support treatment plans and medication compliance
- Group homes with limited therapeutic services and limited ability to ensure medical compliance
- Returning home, where families are often left to determine what is “normal” behavior and what may be driven by delusions, psychosis, or illness
- Homelessness
- Jail
For our family, the first two options were not available. That left us with the remaining choices, and except for homelessness, we experienced every one of them.
None provided the combination of stability, accountability, community, and ongoing support our son needed. He remained lonely, confused, isolated, and desperate. Despite the best efforts of many caring people, the system left significant gaps between treatment and long-term recovery.
We realized that if our son was going to have a meaningful chance at a stable and fulfilling life, we needed to find a better solution.
Family Partnership
We believe recovery is strongest when families remain entangled and supported throughout the resident’s journey.
Serving Adults Transitioning From:
- Psychiatric Hospitals
- Behavioral Health Facilities
- Crisis Stabilization Units
- Family Caregiver Burnout Situations
Take Action
You can make a difference. The Engalla Hope Foundation will look to select partner organizations to deliver outcome-based solutions and services
(281) 468-5692
randall@engallahope.org
www.engallahope.org