Honoring Our Legacy
As HopeWorx moves into a new chapter, we want to recognize the history of CST, AdvocacyWorx, and CommunityWorx, the people who made these programs possible, and the impact they have had on HopeWorx and Montgomery County.
Community Satisfaction Team (CST)
The Community Satisfaction Team is where HopeWorx began. In 1994, we started as the Consumer Satisfaction Team of Montgomery County to make sure people receiving behavioral health services had a voice in shaping the services they received.
People with lived experience went into the community, listened to individuals receiving services, gathered their feedback, and shared what they learned with providers and Montgomery County. The goal was not just to ask whether people were satisfied. It was to make sure their experiences were heard and could help improve the system.
For more than 30 years, CST carried that work forward and helped establish one of the beliefs that remains at the heart of HopeWorx today: people are the experts in their own experiences, and that their voices matter.
Today, that work continues in a new chapter. CST has merged with the Family Satisfaction Team (FST) to become the Community and Family Satisfaction Team (CFST), bringing the voices and perspectives of individuals and families together while continuing the work that has been an integral part of HopeWorx since its beginning.
AdvocacyWorx
AdvocacyWorx grew directly out of the work of CST surveys. While conducting satisfaction surveys, staff often met people who needed help with an individual concern or problem. They did not just need someone who would listen. Sometimes they needed someone to stand beside them, help them understand their rights, and support them as they learned to speak up for themselves.
In 2005, Community Advocates of Montgomery County was created to meet that need. The program later became AdvocacyWorx. Beginning with three advocates in 2006, the program provided peer advocacy, education, outreach, and self-advocacy training throughout Montgomery County.
A significant amount of AdvocacyWorx’s effort centered around forensic peer support in the prisons, and education for individuals who were housed within the state hospital system, providing valuable assistance for some of the county’s most vulnerable populations.
For over 20 years, peer advocates helped people navigate behavioral health services and address concerns related to housing, benefits, utilities, the justice system, and everyday life in the community. Their passion was cheering on others who had similar experiences as their own, and providing hope for a brighter future. The AdvocacyWorx contract ended in June 2026, but the commitment to empowering others remains a core value of the organization.
CommunityWorx
CommunityWorx, also known as the Hope Market, began as a way for people to share donated goods, time, talents, and resources in a community space. Over time, it grew into something much bigger. People came for clothing, furniture, and household items, but they also came to volunteer, create art, participate in activities, make friends, share what they knew, and spend time with people who understood them. HopeWorx supported Street Medicine, provided community meals, and helped manage a food pantry for those in need.
Over time, Hope Market became less about the "market" and more about the community that had formed around it. To better reflect it purpose, Hope Market was re-named CommunityWorx, and became a centralized hub for many area individuals, providers, and community partners. CommunityWorx officially closed its doors in June 2026, when the Stanbridge Street location was closed, but the relationships built there and the spirit of people helping people will forever remain part of HopeWorx.
Their Legacy Continues
We are grateful to everyone who has been part of CST, AdvocacyWorx, and CommunityWorx over the years. Programs change, names change, and sometimes chapters come to a close, but the relationships, lessons, and values built through this work continue to shape HopeWorx and the community we serve.
As we look to the future, we are committed to carrying this legacy forward. The needs that shaped why and how these programs were created have not disappeared, and neither has our commitment to the people and families who rely on HopeWorx to listen, advocate, connect, and create opportunities for belonging. We will continue to look for ways to preserve the spirit and purpose of this work. When opportunities arise, HopeWorx will actively pursue funding and partnerships that allow us to restore, expand, or create programs that address unmet needs in our community.
Our legacy is not solely defined by the programs we have operated. It is defined by the people whose voices have shaped our work, the relationships we have built, and our willingness to continue responding to what our community needs.
We are sincerely indebted to those who built a lasting foundation upon which we continue to grow. We honor the programs- past and present – which are at the heart of our mission. The work continues, the vision continues, and so does our commitment to the people we serve.
From Then to Now
Our identity has evolved. Our roots remain.
