News & Resources
Changed lives
What happens when a community invests in someone's second chapter.
Striving for success — Debbie's story
by Elana Warsen, Affinity Plus
Grace House guests attend workforce and independent-living classes weekly through our STRIVE (Self Sufficiency Training for Reaching Independence & Vocational Empowerment) Project. These classes have had a transformative effect on our guests' lives. Here is one example:
It was a typical lunch hour at the Grand Rapids South branch of Affinity Plus when Debbie walked in. The excited expression on her face made it clear she had come to the credit union for something much more extraordinary than a simple transaction. She was there to share her hope, pride, and gratitude about something important happening in her life.
The evening before, my colleague Jozette and I had visited Grace House, where Debbie was a guest, to lead a resume-building workshop. As usual, we left feeling as though we had only scratched the surface — hopeful we had made some sort of impact.
Little did we know our workshop had inspired Debbie to immediately get started on her own resume. She had come to Affinity Plus to show us the results of her labor: a beautifully formatted, carefully crafted, sure-to-impress resume. She was on her way to apply for two jobs, and the confidence and pride she radiated were felt by everyone in the room.
As she was leaving, Debbie left us with some encouraging words: “Thank you for teaching that class last night. It did a world of help for me. I am going to go to Grace House now and show everybody what I made.”
Update: later that day, Debbie got a call from the manager of one of the two businesses that received her resume. She interviewed, and started her new job on March 25. Way to go, Debbie!
From homelessness to happiness — Nicole's story
Nicole was a guest at Grace House. When she came to our shelter, she was shy, guarded and keenly suspicious; unwilling to make conversation, and unable to trust. Growing up in the foster care system exposed her to ongoing and unimaginable abuse.
By the age of 16, she was living under bridges, in cardboard boxes, garbage dumpsters and a variety of drop-in shelters down south. “Living in various shelters, I was treated as though I had leprosy or some other kind of disease,” Nicole explains, matter-of-factly. “In other words, people treated me with disgust.”
The first week at Grace House, Nicole isolated herself in her room and resisted the staff's efforts to help her find stable housing. With support and encouragement, her seemingly impenetrable walls began to crumble. Her self-confidence grew quickly. She became talkative, playful, and eager to come back as a volunteer. Before the end of her second week, Nicole found her own apartment — and suddenly, she was hopeful for her future.
Since then, Nicole has undergone a complete transformation. She's overcome unbelievable adversity and continues to face her fears head-on. She's become a mentor to our guests, a trusted volunteer, and most importantly, an independent, self-assured woman — successfully living on her own for the first time in her life.
Nicole now enthusiastically volunteers to speak publicly about her Grace House experience. When asked why, she says: “Someone gave me a chance to be a unique individual, and I plan on giving other people the same chance the staff gave me.”