The Childbirth and Parenting Assistance program has found a spacious new home in the lower level of St. Anne’s Children and Family Center, at 25 W. Fifth.

CAPA’s offices were previously located in the nearby Catholic Charities Spokane building at 12 E. Fifth. A program of Catholic Charities, CAPA has moved from 800 square feet of space to 12,000.

“We called our old location the womb,” says Jo Schafer, who serves as one of CAPA’s co-coordinators along with Lisa Green. “You couldn’t do much in there. We can do so many more things for families in this location now.”

The new space includes multiple conference rooms for group settings and playrooms for children when one or both parents who are in a counseling or parenting class, Green says. The other tenants in the building are all Catholic Charities organizations, the largest being the children and family center’s child care center.

CAPA is one of 13 programs Catholic Charities operates in Eastern Washington. With an annual budget of $13.5 million, Catholic Charities provides food, shelter, clothing, education programs, and counseling support to those in need. CAPA’s annual budget is $275,000 and relies primarily on grant funding. No state funding is dedicated to the program, Green says. 

Founded in 1985, CAPA says it has served more than 30,000 families in need of assistance since its inception. The program has mentored more than 600 mothers through the years, says Green, who has worked for CAPA for 15 years. Schafer has been at CAPA for 10 years.

Through word of mouth from clients and community partners, Green says CAPA is busier than ever. Last year, it served 5,500 families and distributed 9,000 maternity and infant supplies such as diapers and clothes. Meanwhile, 1,200 program volunteers logged close to 14,000 hours.

CAPA is on pace this year to equal or exceed some of those figures. In the first half of the year, it served 3,200 families, distributed more than 4,500 maternity and infant supplies, and 475 volunteers have tallied 4,000 volunteer hours. However, the holiday season is when CAPA experiences a huge spike in volunteers and hours served, Green says.

Some of CAPA’s local partners include the Washington state Department of Social and Health Services, Bloom Spokane, and the Spokane County Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program.

Tine Reese is the executive director of Bloom Spokane, an organization founded to improve the quality of maternity care in Spokane by supporting and educating childbearing families and health care professionals. She praises CAPA for its established efforts in the area of group prenatal care.

“Support groups are created by pairing other expectant mothers and couples together who are in similar stages of pregnancy,” Reese says. “It allows a community to be created.”

CAPA serves pregnant women and parents with children ranging in age from infancy to five years for free. Mental health counseling, parent support groups, childbirth classes, crisis intervention, parenting classes, diapers, maternity clothes, and clothes for infants and toddlers also are available at no cost.

Clothes are all donated from the community. Those in need can access them every two months by scheduled appointment. CAPA also offers 12 diapers per child every 30 days with no appointment necessary. A photo ID and proof of the child’s date of birth are required.

With three full-time employees, CAPA also uses a mix of volunteers during the week allowing it to consistently staff 10 people during weekday hours, which are Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“When someone walks through that door, our position is, ‘How can we help you,’ ’’ Green says. “We want to help families that can grow and build strong relationships.”

She says CAPA recognizes the importance of men in the building of strong families as well. The Fatherhood Project, which the program also operates, uses community volunteers to mentor new fathers with children. Every week fathers and mentors meet to help support dads.

There are also monthly group activities for mentors and fathers that include Frisbee, golf, hiking and ropes courses, Green says.

“You both need a cheering section in this parenting walk,” Green says. “As a parent, sometimes you’re just keeping your head above water.”

Co-coordinator Schafer and staff counselor Trishanna Jones are both licensed mental health therapists. Schafer says CAPA’s wide range of services have been effective in breaking generational cycles of poverty, abuse, and neglect for clients.

While counseling sessions are often times of displaying empathy, Schafer says it’s also important to challenge those in need of help when necessary.

“We’ve had to call CPS on more than one occasion through the years,” Schafer says. “But I can’t think of too many times when they didn’t come back and say, ‘Ok, I’m ready to change.’ And they come back because they know we’re here for them and want to see them build healthy relationships.”

Schafer says a unique element at CAPA is that it doesn’t have mandates it expects clients to meet. “It’s truly unconditional. Our programs are all voluntary.”

Says Jones, “Because we offer so many different programs, as a counselor, I get a unique chance to see them interact in different settings. There is nothing more rewarding than helping people overcome the challenges they face.” 

CAPA is hosting an open house in its new space from 6 to 8 p.m. on Oct. 8. The event is free and open to the public.