Two women had a dream more than 40 years ago.
But that dream was rooted in reality: they saw the desperation of young men with addictions being released from Connecticut Valley Hospital (CVH) who were failing to reenter society. Not because these men didn’t want to, but because there were no basic supportive services when they needed them most.
Kätchen Coley and Nan Flanner — volunteers at CVH — saw the need for a place for these individuals, once released, to live temporarily and start to move forward. A place where they could talk to someone who could help them stay off drugs and alcohol and help them have a fighting chance to avoid going back to the streets or worse.
With one of the young men, they wrote a successful government grant proposal for $36,672 and soon after, Connection House was born, offering substance abuse treatment and rehabilitation to help those young men stay straight. Connection House continues its mission to this very day, with 14 beds for men in need of transitional assistance.
Over 40 years later, The Connection has grown from that solitary house to a private, non-profit organization providing 38 programs in 50 locations state-wide, with 600 employees caring for 6,000 individuals every month of the year.
This is quite a story, but unlike most good stories, this one doesn’t have an ending. The dream is no longer a dream. It has become a reality.
Both Kätchen and Nan have now passed away— Kätchen just recently. A Society at The Connection has been established to specifically assist clients in ways traditional government and other grant support cannot. It’s the Kätchen Coley Society, and we ask you to contribute whatever you can to help those who need it most.
The Connection’s success in helping countless men, women and children in reuniting families, breaking the generational cycles of abuse and neglect, creating safer communities and assisting people with mental illness, housing and substance use issues is well-known. And we’re doing it at a far lower cost than if provided by governmental agencies.
Think of those whose lives—now seemingly shattered—can be redeemed. Sounds dramatic? Yes. But we’re doing it every day.
With your continued assistance we can do so much more.
To make a donation to The Kätchen Coley Society, please send a check made payable to The Connection Fund and mail to:
c/o The Kätchen Coley Society
100 Roscommon Drive, Suite 203
Middletown, CT 06457
Thank you for your consideration. The Connection is a non-profit, 501 (c) 3 organization. Gifts are tax deductible.