“I learned that family isn’t always defined by blood. It’s built by people who show up for you, care, and never give up on you.”
Fourteen-year-old Marissa’s life has been full of twists she never asked for. When she was just five years old, she was removed from her mother’s care and sent to live with her grandfather. The change was confusing and frightening. She missed the familiarity of home, the smell of her mother’s perfume, even the small routines that once felt ordinary. After only a year, she moved through two other foster homes, each one different, each one temporary, leaving her feeling unsettled and unsure.
A brief reunification with her mother offered a flicker of hope, a chance to imagine life as it once was, but that hope was short-lived. The return to foster care felt like another door closing, another plan unraveling. This time, Marissa entered Casa Pacifica’s Foster Family Agency (FFA), unsure what stability—or family—might look like for her.
“I didn’t know what to expect when I came to Casa Pacifica,” Marissa admits. “I was scared, I was angry, and I didn’t want to move again. It felt like I was always going to be shuttled from family to family.”
But from the very first meeting, she found adults who listened not just to her words, but to the fears and frustrations behind them. She found a team ready to support her, guide her, and help her discover a sense of stability she had never known. With Intensive Services Foster Care, she had a therapist she could trust, a case manager who advocated for her, and a network of adults who responded whenever she needed them.
“I have grown a lot over the course of my time at Casa Pacifica,” she reflects. “I have a lot of goals and skills now.”
One of Marissa’s most memorable moments came when she moved into her current foster home. With help from her foster family and her Casa Pacifica team, she decorated her room, a small but meaningful act of control in a life that often feels uncertain. Recently, her team and foster family helped her celebrate her fourteenth birthday, complete with a party, a small petting zoo, and a small group of friends.
Her current foster family—two foster siblings, a mom, a dad, and a handful of cats and dogs—has become a true safe haven. “I love that I have animals in my house. They are always there for me and help me feel safe,” Marissa explains. She feels cared for in ways that go beyond words. Her foster dad, Gregory, praises the partnership with Casa Pacifica: “Casa Pacifica’s Foster Family
About Casa Pacifica
Headquartered in Camarillo, California, Casa Pacifica is the largest nonprofit provider of children’s and adolescent mental health services in Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties. Our nationally accredited programs include residential treatment, therapeutic behavioral services, wraparound care, transitional youth services, school-based mental health services and foster care support, along with a fully certified, diploma-granting Non-Public School serving grades K–12. Casa Pacifica specializes in treating youth facing complex mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, and emotional dysregulation. Since 1994, Casa Pacifica has helped transform the lives of nearly 54,600 at-risk children and youth.
For more information or to get involved, email info@casapacifica.org or call 805-366-4040.