What expertise do CAFETY members have?
Our alumni members understand the mental health system/residential placement from the inside. This is a kind of expertise that can only be gained by having the experience of living in placement. This includes knowing what it feels like to be in residential care, the challenges of growing up away from our families of origin, the sense of being different from our peers and isolated from the world. It also includes insight into ways residential care and mental health care at large, can be changed to be more effective and nurturing. All of our members—alumni, allies, and organizations, have their own kind of expertise about residential care from their own experiences, whether it be placement in a religious program, wilderness camp, residential treatment center or a boot camp. CAFETY is a community that brings together these different kinds of expertise.
