Chico News & Review

Chico News & Review

Become a Monthly Supporter Best of Chico Nominate Now!
  • News
    • Local Government
    • Wildfire
      • Wildfire Resources/Updates
      • Wildfire Stories
      • Camp Fire
    • Opinions
      • Editor’s note
      • Letters to the Editor
      • Guest Comments
      • Second & Flume
      • Street Talk
  • Arts & Culture
    • Arts DEVO
    • Art
    • Film
    • Food
    • Music
    • Theater
  • Calendar
    • All Events
    • Music
    • Theater
    • Visual Arts
    • Sports and Outdoor
    • Wine & Dine
  • Best of Chico
    • Vote Now 2025 BoC Nominations
    • Advertise: BoC Nominations
    • Advertise: BoC Sponsorships
    • Promote Yourself for Best of Chico
    • BoC Categories
    • Best of Chico Previous Winners
  • Sponsor Spotlight
  • About CN&R
    • Get our free newsletters
    • Support CN&R
    • Contact Us
    • Archives
      • CN&R Print Archives
      • Discover Butte County
  • Advertise
    • Advertising Contact
    • Chico Gift Guide
    • CN&R Online Ad Options
Hot Topics
  • [ May 13, 2025 ] Under the big top: Safe Space Chico hosts upcoming circus-themed fundraiser at Café Coda on May 23 Arts & Culture
  • [ May 8, 2025 ] Robot dogs and ‘F Newsom’ signage: The ever-stranger conversation about public safety in Chico News
  • [ May 1, 2025 ] What happened to Paulo? Butte County farmworker with deep ties to the community swept off by ICE   News
  • [ April 29, 2025 ] Redding to Chico: Bridging the urban-rural divide for life saving substance abuse treatment News
  • [ April 17, 2025 ] Chico and other State University financial aid students learn Chaos 101 News
Spotlight

More Than Housing: How CHIP Resident Services foster community and improve mental health

January 26, 2023 Raul Clement Comments Off on More Than Housing: How CHIP Resident Services foster community and improve mental health
A mother and her two daughters
Resident Guadalupe McNeil (center) has seen firsthand the benefits of CHIP's Promotores program for her two children, Marisela (17) and Marianna (13). Photo by Ray Laager

If you live in the North Valley, you may have heard of CHIP. You may even know what it stands for: Community Housing Improvement Program. But while the name may give you a clue about what CHIP does, it hardly paints the full picture.

It’s true that CHIP provides housing for low-income and disadvantaged residents. In fact, over its 50-year history, CHIP has built a staggering 2,000 single family homes. They currently manage 18 rental units across seven counties.

But to say all CHIP does is provide “housing” would be missing the bigger picture. As Theresa Nantor, Director of Resident Services, puts it, CHIP believes in “treating the whole person.”

One key to this is Resident Services. CHIP partners with over a dozen local nonprofits and service providers to offer healthy eating, activities for children, craft education, workforce development, college prep and summer programs. Most of these programs take place at the apartment complexes themselves. This spares residents the difficulties of travel and allows them to remain on familiar ground.

A program that’s made a particular impact in CHIP apartment communities in recent years is Promotores. Run by North Valley Catholic Social Services, Promotores aims to improve mental health in the Hmong and Latino communities through weekly educational support groups for adults and children.

The word “educational” is important here. As Norma Servin-Lacy, Program Manager of Promotores, points out, “Mental health is a big stigma in our community. People don’t want to seek help because they don’t want to be seen as ‘crazy.’ There are also the language barriers and lack of access to service.”

Promotores attempts to break down theses stigmas through links to services, information, community bonding and fun activities. The Kids Group meetings, held twice weekly in the afternoons, last between one and two hours, offer bilingual and mindfulness activities, and involve anything from mental health support to arts and crafts to help with homework. Resident Guadalupe McNeil has seen firsthand the benefits of these sessions for her two children, Marisela (17) and Marianna (13).

“They love it,” she says. “I love it. It gets them out of the house, away from screens, and interacting with other kids. During the pandemic, they became very isolated. It affected their mental health.”

It was the impact of the pandemic that Promotores wanted to address with one of their latest activities, Picture This: A Photovoice Project. Adults and children in CHIP residences were given cameras, instruction in photography, and told to shoot photos of their pandemic experience. The result was a series of posters combining text and image, a document of their experiences as Latinos in the U.S. during an uncertain time. These posters expressed their fears, anxieties, and the damage COVID-19 inflicted on their community—but also their hopes for the future and even the small moments of joy found during quarantine.

McNeil feels it was an invaluable experience for her daughters, particularly Marisela. “She was able to express herself in a new way. It really brought her out of her shell.”

So the next time you drive past CHIP housing, remember that you’re looking at more than an apartment complex. You’re looking at a source of connection.

“You can get someone in housing,” Theresa Nantor says, “but if they don’t have the knowledge or tools to access resources in the community, and also be a part of the community, there’s a disconnect there.”

For more information about CHIP, visit https://chiphousing.org/ For more information on the Picture This project, see https://www.migrantclinician.org/resource/picture-photovoice-project-posters-community.html

Share via

Share on Facebook Share on X (Twitter) Share on LinkedIn Share on Email
  • Housing

About the Sponsor

Community Housing Improvement Program (CHIP)
We believe in housing that is affordable for all. CHIP is a private, nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation serving Butte, Glenn, Tehama, Shasta, Sutter, Yuba and Colusa counties. We assist low-income and rural disadvantaged residents, seniors and others who lack financial resources or knowledge to improve or provide adequately for their housing. Our organization has built more than 2,600 housing units in our seven-county service area and is acknowledged as an innovator and leader in rural housing issues.

Meet the sponsors

  • Adventist Health
    Adventist Health

    published 7 articles

  • Butte County Public Works
    Butte County Public Works

    published 10 articles

  • Chico News & Review
    Chico News & Review

    published 2 articles

  • Community Housing Improvement Program (CHIP)
    Community Housing Improvement Program (CHIP)

    published 12 articles

  • Oroville Hospital
    Oroville Hospital

    published 1 article

  • Tehama County Solid Waste Management Agency
    Tehama County Solid Waste Management Agency

    published 12 articles

For info on how we can tell your story here, contact us!
Newsletter

Stay Updated

For the latest local news, arts and entertainment, sign up for our newsletter.
We'll tell you the story behind the story.

Sign me up!
Links
  • CN&R Archives
  • CN&R Guides
  • Best of Chico
  • Discover Butte County
  • RSS
  • Calendar
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • Contact Us
Become a supporter
  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • Follow us on YouTube
  • Follow us on Instagram
Categories
Archives

©2020 Chico News & Review