Casa Ruby

[3] In September 2021, Casa Ruby had over 100 employees, but its management said it would lay off more than half after the D.C. Department of Human Services (DHS) declined to renew an $850,000 grant.

[6] On August 11, 2022, it was announced that a D.C. Superior Court judge appointed an outside party to take into account all of Casa Ruby’s financial assets and determine whether there is a feasible way to continue operations.

Corado officially founded Casa Ruby in 2012, as a Latino LGBT community center in a Columbia Heights brownstone at 2822 Georgia Ave.

[10] In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the D.C. Department of Human Services reduced funding for nonprofits in response to Mayor Muriel Bowser's request for COVID expense cuts, including those supporting youth experiencing homelessness.

[1] In March 2021, Corado created a GoFundMe to support relocating Casa Ruby's headquarters from its location at 7530 Georgia Ave., NW, in response to a landlord dispute.

"[4] In September 2021, the DHS declined to renew Casa Ruby's $850,000 grant, which paid for a 50-bed emergency shelter that at the time housed at least 10 people and a center for homeless LGBTQ youth and adults.

Allegedly, Corado transferred over $150,000 of emergency relief funds to private accounts in El Salvador, concealing it from the IRS.

[13] Blackmon left the executive director position in February 2022, reporting that she was unable to access bank accounts for Casa Ruby controlled by Corado.

[6] When it opened its first community center in 2012, Casa Ruby provided immigration assistance, HIV testing, and other services in Spanish and English.