Kate's Casa

About

Kate’s Casa is a tax-exempt nonprofit organization, holding a 501(c)(3) status created to be an additional support for local immigrant families.

When you donate to us, 100% of your contribution goes directly to families in need locally and in El Porvenir, Guatemala. We don’t take a salary; instead, we focus on facilitating monetary donations and essential goods to ensure they reach those who need them most. Our streamlined process provides a transparent and easy way for you to see the real impact of your generosity.

About Kate

MY STORY (written January, 2020)

I was born in 1979 and grew up in a mainly white, middle/upper class, suburban town of Phoenixville. I didn’t know much about anyone that didn’t look like me. I was ignorant to the rest of the world.

As a teenager, I started working at Michael’s Cleaners. I met women and men from Mexico that would work all day pressing clothes. It would be a million degrees in there and they’d be in a tight corner pressing clothes over hot irons and machines. I then worked with people from Vietnam at Kim’s Seafood. I saw a similarity in the long hours they’d put in and never complained! They always seemed so happy and positive.

I began sponsoring a child through Children International around 14 years old. Those commercials killed me, and I never understood why I was so lucky to be born in America, when I could have been born anywhere. Those commercials showed me that families lacked basic necessities around the world! A $12 a month sponsorship was nothing. I would shop and send my child, Emiro from Colombia, birthday and Christmas gifts. It gave me happiness. As a teenager, I began to see and started to understand our world’s inequality.

Kate Camarda

Founder

I graduated from Millersville University in 2001 with a degree in International Studies and minors in General Business and Spanish. I had no idea what I wanted to do. I ended up sitting in a cubicle in Wayne, PA working for an international company, De Lage Landen, which is based in the Netherlands. I quickly realized this was not how I wanted to spend the rest of my life. Great company but sitting in a cubicle all day was not for me. I became friends with the janitor that would pick up the trash from everyone’s cubicle at the end of the day. He was from Mexico and a hard-working husband and father of 3. This was one of his two full time jobs. I will never forget the looks I would get when we’d talk for a couple of minutes. A few asked if he was bothering me. Little did they know, I was the one probably bothering him. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know him and also wanted to practice my Spanish.

During my two years at DLL, I found myself researching what on earth to do for a job. I came across a website for teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) in other countries. My heart swelled. This was the first I heard of ESL. Within a few months I boarded a plane to Guadalajara, Mexico alone. I planned on 6 weeks there to see if I would like this type of job. I spent 4 weeks going to classes in the morning at the International Teacher Training Organization (ITTO) and teaching ESL to students ages 5-18 in the afternoons. I then volunteered at an elementary school for 2 weeks. I loved every second. I lived with an older lady who cooked breakfast, lunch, and dinner for me and gave me a wonderful experience. We would often play rummy at night. We both cried when I left. I LOVED it and found my passion in life – working with, supporting, and being around immigrants.
I came back to America and enrolled in Eastern University. It was the quickest place to get my teaching degree in Elementary Education with the ESL certificate. I did my student teaching the Fall of 2005 at Caln Elementary in Coatesville. The ESL teacher ended up moving to Florida and I was hired with a contract to teach Elementary ESL there. My 50+ students there were my life. My favorite memory is taking them all on a field trip to Margate, NJ to see Lucy the Elephant and go to the beach. Most had never been to the beach before. I met so many wonderful families. A few I am still in touch with today.
I got married 6/23/2007, and Dennis and I had our first daughter, Stella, in March 2008 (honeymoon surprise!). 🙂

I took the rest of the year maternity leave. I knew I needed to be home with her for at least 1 year so I then extended my leave. During this time, I saw an opportunity to teach ESL for a cyber school. I started teaching ESL and MS Math online in February 2009. My husband Dennis and I knew we wanted other children, and teaching from home ended up being the best path for us. I missed my Coatesville students so much and was torn during this time, but my heart was now also with my baby and I needed to be with her.

We then had our second daughter, Audrina, in August 2010. I continued with the cyber school, but my heart was also yearning to teach ESL face to face. I came across and joined the board of Alianzas in Phoenixville in 2011. Supported by them, I started an Adult ESL program a few months later. It was a ton of work, but I didn’t mind it, because I enjoyed it so much. I definitely got more from my students than they got from me. I taught the adults for 2 hours on Monday nights in Barkley’s (local elementary school in Phoenixville) cafeteria, while my awesome husband was in charge of childcare in a classroom next door. We had a fun group of about 15 regular families, mainly from Guatemala and Mexico. They will always hold a special place in my heart.

I continued this class for a couple of years, still working for the cyber school too. I then became pregnant with our 3rd daughter, Vienna, who was born in August 2013. I’ll never forget the baby shower my spring Adult ESL class held for me that year. My ESL families, often without an extra penny, are beyond generous and know how to show you appreciation. <3 With 3 daughters, I needed to step back a little and focus more on my family. I helped, when I could, with the classes that were now taught by a couple of other amazing teachers.
During these years I also met some life changing families through my Agora cyber school ESL teaching job. I taught and got to know a family that fled the Syrian crisis before it was all over our news. They went from being wealthy living in a beautiful home in Syria to living in a tiny apartment in Philadelphia working as a hot dog vendor. I met a family from the Swat Valley in Pakistan whose father brought his children to Philadelphia to give his daughters a fair chance at life. They wouldn’t have been able to attend school in Pakistan and are currently studying to become doctors in Philadelphia universities. One of his daughters reminds me so much of Malala and saw things no child ever should. I have met incredible kids through the cyber school from Peru, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Iraq, Bangladesh, India, China, Russia, Mexico, Ethiopia, Egypt, and Poland just to name a few. My heart grows as I meet each new child. Their resilience and life’s experiences are extraordinary. One thing I’ve learned and seen/heard firsthand is how cruel our world really is. My students’ families all come here for various reasons, but most are escaping a hell we can only imagine and want a better life for their children.

Fast forward to August 2015 and our 4th and final daughter, Sailor, was born. Our family was now complete. I was a busy mom now with kids in school and at home. I would often travel to my cyber school students’ homes with a child or two in tow to help kids face to face. I missed the face to face interaction with students and found it much easier to help them with schoolwork. In September 2016, a part time ESL job opening was posted in the Phoenixville Area School District. My hometown and favorite town! I applied, nervously went on interviews, and was hired. My first day was October 17, 2016 teaching part time ESL to 9 Kindergarten students. I finally felt relief and at home to be back in a brick and mortar classroom. I am currently teaching part time ESL now to Kindergarten and 1st grade students. I am also teaching adult ESL again. Our number of English Learners (ELs) in Phoenixville have been growing steadily each year. It is awesome!

It is my passion to help my students and families inside and outside of school and advocate for them all. My daughters love meeting my students and helping, too. My youngest daughter, Sailor, is now in Kindergarten for the 2020-2021 school year. These years have flown by and I am thankful I have been able to manage working and raising my daughters at home. I turned 40 in September, 2019. I really did some soul searching and prioritized my goals in life with this ‘big’ birthday. It has always been a dream of mine to start a shelter and/or non-profit to better help my immigrant families that I love dearly. It is something that I’ve always thought of and continued to go in circles about because I just didn’t have the time. Now that my girls are getting older, and that my husband and I are more stable with our careers, we have decided to slowly begin this new journey. I will continue to pray, follow God’s plan, and work hard to make my purpose and dream a reality! Thank you for reading and for your support.

Meet Our Board

Kate's Casa

Stephanie Edinger

Director, Property Management, Link Logistics

Barbara Vondercrone

Retired Office Manager & HR Tax Specialist

Kristyn Snyder

Social Media Specialist at FedWriters

Diane Lynch

RN, BSN, CBC, BBA, Staff Nurse at Main Line Health, Paoli Hospital

Gaby Castanon

Vice President

Megan Holler

Small Business Owner, Trinity Salon

Marisa McLaughlin

Real Estate Agent, Team Leader, Keller Williams Realty Group

Cesilia Chavez

Small Business Owner, Cesilia Cleaning Service

Dilcia Molina

Small Business Owner, Maribel Molina Cleaning Service

Kristen Gooslin

Elementary Aide, Phoenixville Area School District

Jaime Ciarlello

Podchaser Senior Manager, Business Development

Juliann Wade

Virology Department Supervisor, Charles River Laboratories

Fabricia Tavares

Small Business Owner, Fabricia Cleaning Service