Home #1
Amelia lives in Home 1. This is the first time she has ever had her own apartment and she is beyond excited! She was born in Santa Rosa; her mom died when she was four so she and her sister grew up in the foster care system. Sadly, they were never in the same home together, but do remain close.
Amelia stayed with several families over the years and on transitioning out of the system at 18, moved from place to place, staying with friends, or in motels and shelters. Amelia says she has never felt nurtured or felt a sense of stability; things that most people take for granted
She recently had a baby boy, who arrived seven weeks early and is still in the hospital. Thankfully, her sister has been really helpful and has been able to pass along baby things. So as a single mom, this apartment is finally somewhere she can feel settled and somewhere she can finally call home.
As Amelia walked through her home with a smile, she couldn't believe this was the same apartment she had left only a few hours earlier. She told us "You hit it right, this is exactly what I would have done if I could have afforded it." She is so happy to finally have a cozy warm place to call home.
Home #2
Debra most recently had been living in a shelter with her 17-year-old daughter; she has three other adult children and three grandchildren.
Debra had been battling severe health issues for 30 years. She finally was able to stabilize her health ten years ago. She received two degrees: one in Human Service Advocacy, and one in Alcohol and Other Drugs Services (AODS) from a community college. She worked at Catholic Charities for awhile but unfortunately had to go on medical leave and has not yet been able to return to work.
Last year alone, Debra suffered three heart attacks and a blood clot. She is thrilled to be moving into her own place for the first time in five years and is very grateful to Welcoming Home for providing furniture to make it a home. She is hopeful that this new and calm environment will help both her and her daughter get a fresh start.
Even before we set up this household on Saturday afternoon, Debra texted us to say “Thank you - I appreciate you so much, I really do. If you weren't doing this for us, we would have been sleeping on the floor with just our clothes and blankets...so, really, thank you!”
Debra's daughter stopped by just before we finished. She was so joyful that she immediately called her mom on Facetime and gave her mom a virtual tour of the apartment. She said "Mom, I never lived in a beautiful place like this!" Then, when Debra arrived she said "Is this for real?! I haven't had my own home for so long - and I've never had anything this beautiful."
Home #3
Jack lives with his daughter Mavis and six-year-old grandson in Home 3. Over the last five years they’ve lost three homes to nearby fires: the Tubbs fire, the Ranch fire and the River fire. Each time, the family had just been able to settle down after losing everything, living in temporary accommodations and finally finding a home, only to go through the loss and recovery all over again.
Meanwhile, Jack has been unable to work at his facilities/equipment job that he held for 18 years because he was disabled due to a workplace injury. It took years to get his disability case settled so that he could finally receive disability pay. Jack’s daughter Mavis is an in-home care giver.
The three of them have been living in a shelter until now. Jack is thrilled to be able to put his grandson in a stable school and to have a safe and comfortable place to live, thanks to your support.
Jack walked around his "new" apartment with tears in his eyes. He especially appreciated the beautiful desk where he could now set up his computer and work comfortably. His grandson was ecstatic to see his Paw Patrol-themed bed. After we left, we received a note from Jack saying he'd taken a nap on his new bed with the very warm comforter on it and when he woke up, he felt "like he was nine years old again!" He went on to thank us for making his little family "Feel at Home."