 DEIRDRE HOULIHAN DICARA
by JOSEPH MONTEBELLO I am thrilled to be sitting down with Deirdre Houlihan DiCara today because it happens to be her birthday. Houlihan is a force to be reckoned with. If she were running for office, you would vote for her in a heartbeat. As executive director of FISH since 2013, she is passionate about her job and the people FISH serves. She never says no and there is nothing she won’t attempt to make better. During the pandemic she has worked nonstop to keep things flowing in as normal a way as possible. Since early March, we have gone through the stages of fear, stress and anxiety - to what has evolved to become routine and resilient in our services for the hungry and the homeless.
Currently we are on the frontlines with the Coronavirus, serving the hungry and the homeless. We are challenged in the FISH Shelter as to how to socially distance in our dorms and communal dining area, keep up with health and safety protocols, provide case management, and keep morale up; and at the FISH Food Pantry - facing an increase in need as food suppliers and resources have dwindled. We have learned to mask and socially distance in our communal home setting in the FISH Shelter. We championed “Team Stay Healthy” as we’ve created health and safety protocols. We decompressed our facility, moving half of our residents who were most vulnerable (aged 60+ and health risks) – to a hotel funded by the State - providing them with meals, medical care and case management. Today we are focused on placing our residents into permanent supportive housing. And, at the FISH Food Pantry, where grocery store donations nearly ceased, and we experienced an increase in food demands due to those facing unemployment, and we had the need to purchase food to fill our shelves - we are now thankfully on an upswing of generous giving. We are forever grateful to the many heroes and angels that have appeared during this pandemic – truly helping us to keep our doors open in our humanitarian services. Numerous GREAT deeds, such as – folks who have been providing dinners in the shelter; mask makers; health providers who stepped up to help us re-arrange our dormitories and common areas, and advised on health protocols; miraculous financial donors and foundations that have created special COVID -19 grants; friends and Food Rescue US delivering groceries for the food pantry; the Litchfield Distillery making hand sanitizer and then donating people’s contributions to FISH making up for the loss of our annual fund raiser that we count on; receiving hearts and rainbow pictures from children,…. So many are shining in your/their goodness, thoughtfulness and generosity! For more than 45 years, Connecticut Magazine has coupled award-winning journalism with a monthly slice of Connecticut living in a magazine that reaches more than 380,000 adult print and online readers each month statewide. This past January, FISH was featured in the magazine. Please read the article below.  BY BRUNO MATARAZZO JR.
REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN TORRINGTON — Deirdre DiCara is in her office on the second floor of the FISH shelter on South Main Street when she spots a former volunteer walking down the hallway past her door, which is wide open. The volunteer gives a quick wave when DiCara jumps up. “I have to give him a hug,” DiCara says, as she walks over to the young man and hugs him. DiCara is known by many for her warm, affectionate persona.She has a smile on her face even when you ask her what time it is. In her first year as executive director at FISH, or Friends in Service to Humanity, DiCara has kept her positive attitude even as she confronts the issues of homelessness and hunger. |
