Success Stories
JACOB and MARCELLA:
Jacob and Marcella were 75 years old. Some years ago they re-mortgaged their house because of needed repairs that they couldn’t afford on their Social Security income. They had lived in the house their entire married life, about 40 years. Unfortunately, with the rising costs of medications, food and utilities they found themselves unable to make the mortgage payments. They ended up losing their home and were found on their front stoop by a nephew who was passing by to check on them when he learned that their phone had been cut off. He brought them to our office.
After our Project Gatekeeper staff completely assessed their situation, we placed them in a hotel. They remained there for 53 days. We got them Meals on Wheels to help them with food and provided them with transportation to their appointments. We located a handicapped-accessible apartment and were able to help them with basic furniture through the Furniture Ministry at St. Joseph’s Social Service Center. We gave them a grant for 1st month rent and they were able to save for the security. Today they are managing well in their new apartment.
JUANITA:
Juanita came to us having just been put out by her friend. Her employer had relocated out of state and she could not move with it as she shared custody of her three boys. Unable to afford her apartment on unemployment, she was evicted and moved in with a friend. Unfortunately, her presence there endangered the tenancy of her friend and she was put out.
Juanita came to us after having spent the night sleeping in her car. She did not qualify for public assistance and so most of the shelters could not take her. Those who could take in a working family were full. Juanita and her sons were referred to Sister Maryanne for placement in our Hospitality House Program. Sr. Maryanne quickly processed them and they moved into the house two days later. The smiling faces of those boys at our annual Christmas Party was a joy to see. They were happy and safe and Juanita could enjoy herself knowing that she had a safe place to live while she completed her program and looked for work.
LUCINDA:
We have known Lucinda since 1990. She has always struggled with drug addiction, as have many of her siblings. I ran into her some weeks ago as I was crossing the 118 Division Street parking lot from one building to another. We stopped to chat. She was homeless again and living bunked up with a friend. Her daughter, who was one of our most promising students in the children’s program (Bernice’s Place), was out of school until Lucinda could find a place to live. Lucinda was on public assistance, so her options were limited at best. I referred her our housing search program. I also reminded Lucinda to re-admit her daughter to Bernice’s Place. She made a vague promise to do so and then left.
I saw Lucinda again a few weeks later. She was talking with Kathy Harrison, the coordinator at Bernice’s Place, in order to get her daughter back into the program. She had found housing through one of our referrals and had been settling in. Her daughter was still out of school, but Kathy was already working out a plan to help Lucinda enroll her daughter into the local grammar school. Then Lucinda turned to me. “Thank you for caring about us and for having my daughter in your program. She loves it here. I’m thinking of going to get myself together and I’m glad that she will have a special place to go to while I’m working on my stuff.”
That’s exactly what Bernice’s Place is supposed to be — a quiet oasis of fun and learning for our kids who are living in such unstable homes.
BOBBIE:
When Bobbie Diaz came to us last year he was the proverbial mess: homeless, addicted and feeling lost and hopeless about himself. But our Project Gatekeeper staff, Pam Brown and Ana Hernandez didn’t see a hopeless, broken man. They saw a person with potential that hadn’t been reached, and they made it their goal to get him there. Bobbie entered Operation Warm Heart and stayed about two months. It was a drag, he told me, to have to move every night, but it was a warm place to sleep and there was food on the table. After about a week, Bobbie wanted something more and sat with Pam to discuss his life — there was some yelling, some crying and lots of listening. Since Bobbie was ineligible for public assistance and therefore for medical assistance, it was difficult to find a rehabilitation program with a space for him. Eventually, through persistence, we were able to get him into a program at Bergen Regional Medical Center. From there he returned to Operation Warm Heart until we could get him into a long-term program in Pennsylvania.
We didn’t hear from Bobbie for a long time. We didn’t know if he was able to manage the program or if he left. Just silence. Then a surprise Christmas visit: Bobbie came in. He was doing well! He was working and continuing to follow the program. He had been clean for 8 months and he looked different: healthy in mind, spirit and body. That had to be the best present we could ever get. You go, Bobbie!