Franciscan Sister Serves on Manitowoc CORE Board

Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity feel called to serve on various boards that serve those in need. Sister Adrianna Schouten has been a member of the Board of Directors for CORE and the secretary since fall, 2020. She shares with us what CORE is and how it helps people it serves.

CORE is a service organization founded in 2019 to help people who are struggling with mental health and substance abuse. The mission of CORE is to create healthy and resilient communities. The vision is to identify and meet the unmet needs of people struggling with mental health and substance use and through strategic collaboration with the community to create strategies for sustainable success.

CORE offers residential and outpatient services. In Manitowoc there are two residential facilities. The women’s facility on Riverside Drive (former St. Clare convent) with a capacity for 16 persons. The men’s facility on Vista Drive (former assisted living facility) with a capacity for 20 persons. The occupancy for these facilities has been 90%. The outpatient facility in Manitowoc is on Dewey Street. The sober living and outpatient services are also offered in Waupaca and Shawano. There are requests and interest in the program from at least 10 other counties. At present we employee 40 persons as peer support staff, outpatient clinician, and administration. In 2023 just under 1000 persons were helped.

The response of those served has been very positive. Some examples are:
“This place saved my life, and the people here truly care about you and want you to succeed.”
“The treatment was exactly what I was hoping for and needed. You have to want it though and once I was able to believe it was possible and was able to really take in what they were saying, my growth was unstoppable and will continue to be thanks to CORE.”
“CORE is an amazing place to recover at. This team teaches and helps out in every aspect of life. I thank them 1,000 times for making my stay as welcoming, as helpful as they could. If I could rate this place it’ll be a 5 out of 5 on every level. Thank you.”