News & Events

Passing the Baton

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July 26, 2017

Thoughts from Outgoing President Debbie Schoeneshoefer

Some days this job is discouraging. Monday was one of those days. We interviewed a family for the Meadow House and a man for the Grace House. It was hard to listen to their struggles, especially when the solutions were not clear.

Afterwards, I had lunch with a counselor who has been instrumental in the success of our program. We talked about what success looked like for the people in our houses, and what were realistic outcomes.

I loved what she said. "Often, we don't see positive results for years, but each person is changed forever because of the growth they experienced at the houses."

While we would like to see immediate, positive results, that is often not the case. Sometimes it's three giant steps forward and a couple of baby steps backwards. Other times it feels like 23 giant steps backwards, but that is simply not true.

In the Meadow House, the children have a stable environment to grow in for nine months. The parents have the opportunity to go to counseling and work through past and present issues. They are often able to overcome many of the obstacles they are facing, and are even able to experience a special Christmas.

After lunch, I returned a call to a client who had recently moved out of the Meadow House. She is doing so good and thankful for the opportunity to get back on her feet. She is setting an example for her daughters that hard work and dedication pays off. I have no doubt that those two little girls’ lives will be different as adults because of their experience with HART.

Later that day I got a call from another former client, who had not only been homeless but was severely burned in a fire and spent 10 days in the hospital. He went from transitional housing to marriage and now lives in an apartment with his wife and is very stable. He spent most of the phone call choking back tears as he told me how he had gotten to see his sister the day before for the first time in many years.  He had lost contact with his family due to his actions, but now was reunited with them. He was so thankful for HART and the life changes it had given him the opportunity to make.

As I hand off the presidency to Fred Bremerman, I am confident he will not only do a great job but will take HART to higher levels. His organizational skills and forward thinking has made him a success professionally, and greatly respected with the City of Elk Grove. I admittedly don't have inspiration for what our future program looks like. But I know Fred does. That is his specialty—planning. So, hold on, and be confident that HART is in good hands.

Debbie Schoeneshoefer
2016-2017 HART President

Uplift

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July 12, 2017

HART welcomes new efforts to help address the cycles of poverty that keep individuals rooted in chronic homelessness.

Uplift Elk Grove is a comprehensive, holistic program designed to break the cycle of poverty by building well-being together: rethinking poverty, reframing solutions, and reshaping our community. Through education and intentional relationships, we can restore abundance for families and individuals and bridge the cultural and socioeconomic class lines that often divide us. One of our primary goals is to provide a framework in which people can move off public assistance and build abundant lives.

Weekly Meetings are the core of Uplift. They include shared meals, time for relationship-building, mutual accountability, goal setting, tutoring and child care and celebration of success. The series of classes cover topics such as self-awareness, assessment of resources, budgeting, resolving conflict, the role of trauma in one’s life and community change. At the end of the series, graduates are matched with allies (trained volunteers) for support to continue the journey of moving towards mutual well-being. We recognize that transition from surviving to thriving takes time; participants are asked to dedicate 18-36 months to training and relationship building.

If this sounds interesting to you, follow our Facebook Page to keep in touch as we start our first classes in the Fall of 2017. We’ll be looking for volunteers to be allies, serve food at weekly meetings, help children with homework, provide childcare, help with fundraising, provide employment or internship opportunities and any number of other supportive activities.

Trajectory

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July 01, 2017

Trajectory is a trendy word defined as the path that is followed by a projected object under the action of a given force.

Last summer, we met Lisa living in desperation out of her car with her two little ones. It was hot and they were beyond exhausted. Exhausted from lack of sleep, fear, and the bleak prospects for the future. Mom's words said it all. What if I lose my job because I haven't showered? What if we are attacked when I finally drift off to sleep? What if my bad credit prevents me from ever finding my own place?

And the worst: What if CPS takes my little ones from me?

The odds against her seemed insurmountable. But with great relief, that proved to be false. Recently, Lisa and her two little girls moved into a precious one bedroom apartment with a pool and a grassy area right in front of their apartment. They even have a fireplace!

Last August, Lisa and her girls entered HART's Meadow House for homeless families. During their time there, Lisa worked hard to stabilize her family. With determination, she accomplished all the goals her mentor and she set up. She got a better job with benefits, saved money, worked to better her credit, found stable childcare for her girls, and went to counseling for her own peace of mind. Ten months of hard work paid off.

Yes, HART helped to stabilize Mom, but more importantly, the trajectory of those two precious girls' lives have been changed forever. They have lived through watching Mom work hard to succeed and it paid off. They will be compassionate, caring women because of the hardship they have been through. You can see it in their hearts. They will help to make our world a better place because of what they have been through.

We are so proud of Lisa, and happy for her family. The future looks so bright for them.