Stories of Success
At the end of the day, it is the lives changed and people helped which define and motivate us to do what we do. With help from the community and generous contributions from donors, we can continue to bring you stores like these of lives touched and people helped by our services and facilities.
The stories we report here are actual client cases. They are the children, parents, couples and individuals we work with every day. For most, their names, photos and some details have been changed to protect their privacy. All offer their stories so you can better understand how lives can be changed when someone in need asks for our help.
““Very hard realizing at my age that I was homeless, and she was there for me, the staff was there for me,” said Robin Countryman, a MICAH House resident.
Robin and Jessica are just two of the women who have utilized MICAH House’s newest women’s shelter since it opened in early January 2019. With services like an on-site therapist and health care clinic, women are able to receive the services they need to get back on their feet. ”
“I had a client named David who was very institutionalized from being at the shelter for over 20 years. When I first started working with him he didn’t know what he wanted to do and was always worried about his retirement and the IRS (income). I met him at the shelter every week to try and get him to focus on looking for an apartment, but he never wanted to because “they needed him at the shelter and he doesn’t have any income”. It took me over three months to get him to even agree to look at an apartment. Once we got him to look at the SRO, he finally decided he wanted to participate in HFS services fully and took the SRO we showed him. Once he was housed, I was able to get him to apply for his Social Security and retirement from his previous employment. Within a couple months he had his Social Security. David began to strive on his own. He learned how to pay his bills on his own and how to live independently again. A few months later he finally got his retirement settlement. David became completely independent. At the end we focused on his budgeting and making sure he was paying his bills first, then his needs, and then his wants. David relearned to strive all over again and did an amazing job. He thanked me for pushing him, believing in him, and never giving up on him. He told me “he now loves living on his own, and having his peace and quiet”.
David has since moved out of his SRO and into a one bedroom apartment. David went from knowing nothing but the institutionalization of the shelter, to taking care of himself in his own home and loving life again.”