CalHOPE Support Program Wraps Up, Serves Hundreds of Thousands in Dozens of Languages
In July, CalMHSA completed its work on the CalHOPE Support Program (CHSP). The three-year partnership with DHCS served over 200,000 Californians through the calhopeconnect.org chat app and more than 100,000 through individual and family group sessions.
The CHSP began during the COVID-19 pandemic as part of FEMA’s Crisis Counseling Program, consisting of two parts: 1) grants to community-based organizations to serve California’s distinct and varied underserved populations and 2) the chat app, calhopeconnect.org, to counsel Californians virtually (at a reduced capacity in 2024-25).
Throughout the project, data showed the primary need addressed during individual/family and group sessions was finding services and supports, which highlighted the array of community needs and predominantly low-income households being served.
In addition to counseling services, the CHSP subcontracted agencies also provided over tens of thousands of outreach events in parks, schools and colleges, religious sites, community-based organizations, private facilities, public health fairs, mental health awareness events, LGBQT+ events, substance use recovery facilities, senior centers, food distribution sites, ethnic and cultural fairs, the Mexican Consulate, and social media and virtual events.
The CHSP-funded agencies spoke 50 different languages and represented the myriad racial, ethnic, and cultural communities that comprise California.
October 16, 2025