“Sometimes someone comes in and they just touch your heart”, says Ms. Janie, one of the TAP workers at St. Francis House. “That’s what happened today.”
“Joey” is a thirty-nine-year-old man with physical and mental challenges. He is currently unsheltered and wasn’t sure of local resources. “He had been staying at a small, local facility, but got kicked out after getting on the wrong side of the owner,” Ms. Janie continued. “Since being unsheltered he had been beaten up and then later arrested for sleeping on the sidewalk. When we asked about family he said that he had been on his own since he was fifteen. He then added, “My mama loved me for a while”. She paused and took a deep breath. “It made me cry. He had nothing- no clothes, no money. He did have a food stamp card, but there wasn’t anything on it. He said he had slept in someone’s garage and so he bought them groceries.”
“Joey” needed a bus pass to get to the Salvation Army for shelter, but didn’t have a referral. “I just had to help. His story just touched my heart, I didn’t just cry, I sobbed.” So Ms. Janie went to work. She talked to our Community Resource Coordinator and together, they found a way. “We got him that bus pass and then made sure he had clothes, shoes, snacks, a towel, hygiene items, and socks. It was just something I had to do.”