Concho Valley Turning Point Raises Funds, Continues to Serve Community

Concho Valley Turning Point (CVTP) has enjoyed a year of expansion as well as generosity from donors. CVTP is a Christ-centered non-profit organization that aims to help men and woman who struggle with issues such as addiction and abuse.

According to Travis Mathes, executive director at CVTP, the ministry has spent a good amount of time networking in the past months; organizations with connections to CVTP include the Alcohol & Drug Abuse Council for the Concho Valley and Child Protective Services.

“We’ve had good relationships with them, but they’ve been sending more and more of their clients our way,” Mathes said.

In addition, CVTP has been attempting to raise funds for paying off the organization's apartments as well as expanding its meeting space. During some events, CVTP’s space is cramped with up to 40 people in the current small space.

San Angelo Gives was integral in helping CVTP fund these payments.

“We had a lot of good donors; we had like 19,000 dollars with half a day left to go,” Mathes said. “We sent out an e-mail just letting people know where we were at. We were really hoping to get to the $30,000 mark. Within 15 minutes, somebody wrote a check for the remainder to get us over $30,000 on San Angelo Gives. It was really a blessing; we were so excited about that.”

Mathes said that the majority of the funds raised with San Angelo Gives will go toward paying off the apartments.

Not only does CVTP assist its clients with problem coping, but it also helps them have a little fun as well. Jessica Langford, a board member of CVTP, has been leading a good deal of events for the clients.

“[Langford] and her family have just been really good about having events with the guys where they go out and play paintball, just learning how to have fun without drugs or alcohol,” Mathes said. “[The Langfords] take them camping [and] they have them at their house. They’ve been a real blessing.”

Mathes said that CVTP’s clients have had more opportunities to give back to San Angelo with community service in the past year.

When San Angelo LIVE! asked Mathes what it was like to lead such an organization, his response was not what we expected.

“Well, I don’t run the organization; Maria Mejia does,” Mathes said.

CVTP’s business administrator Maria Mejia is the only paid employee of CVTP.

“Our business administrator Maria Mejia, she tirelessly works at this place,” Mathes said. “We could never have enough money to pay her what she’s worth. Her heart for this [organization] is [going] just 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. She’s handling business to the point where I really just ask her what she needs me to do because that’s just how good she is.”

Mathes said that people such as Mejia and Langford assist him in such a way to make his job much easier.

“[While] being a director of Concho Valley Turning Point, what I’ve learned is the best thing to do is to get out of God’s way, get out of these people [who] God’s working through’s way, and let them do what they want to do,” Mathes said.

While fundraising is essential in some form to all non-profit organizations, Mathes said that money is anything but CVTP’s focus.

“Whenever I came on [as director], we decided we weren’t going to be an organization that’s always asking for money,” Mathes said. “What we were going to focus on is being an organization that does God’s will. God will supply the funds for that. It’s such a relief not hassling people for funds and just focusing on God’s work. When we have a need, we let people know. And it’s always been filled. The spirit of generosity in town is amazing, especially towards us.”

Mathes said that the San Angelo Area Foundation gave CVTP a portion of money needed for their renovations. Furthermore, Angelo State University just donated around 30 sets of furniture for use in CVTP’s apartments and offices. Mathes wanted to thank these organizations as well as every individual who donated to CVTP through San Angelo Gives.

“We’re absolutely going to be good stewards of any money that we’re given,” Mathes said. “We couldn’t do it if it wasn’t for [the donors]. We trust God for the money, so to every person who gave, we just want to say thanks for letting Him work through you. Thanks to everybody who gave through San Angelo Gives, everyone who constantly and faithfully gives of their time and their prayers to this organization; it really is changing lives.”

Despite these changes, Mathes said that the organization’s Christ-centered focus is one thing that is not going to change.

“We see men who have completely new lives,” Mathes said. “If you met them now, you would never believe they were who they tell you they were before they started following God and we don’t take any credit for that. But we just point people to the right direction.”

For more information about CVTP, check out San Angelo LIVE!'s previous article concerning the organization.