Last month we were able to move a family of three (a single mom and two teenagers) into affordable housing through our partnership with The Well. This will be the first family in our Housing Support Services to take advantage of this new partnership!
This family is now safe, in affordable housing. Mom is now able to save money and focus on the needs of her children without worrying about losing their home. Now living closer to Mom’s place of employment, she is able to increase to full-time hours! Mom is now beginning to establish a working budget, which will leave a positive impact on her finances. Volunteers from Hopewell United Methodist Church have helped Mom to increase her support circle. These loving volunteers will provide everyone in the family with new friendships. With the specific goal of homeownership becoming a reality within the next 3-4 years, this affordable housing has empowered Mom to save for her family’s future.
With partnerships with churches such as The Well, we are able to have the flexibility and resources we need to serve our participants.
Participant and family’s identities have been censored due to safety concerns.
More About the Well
The Well is a community center that was started by Hopewell United Methodist Church in 2017 with the mission of “sharing God’s love with the Downingtown area by providing physical, emotional, and spiritual support to the community.” The Well offers after-school and summer programs for children from the community; classes for senior citizens that include art, exercise, yoga, and Bible study; Celebrate Recovery large and small groups, ESL classes, a cancer art therapy group, and a transitional housing program. All of The Well’s programs and classes are free to the public and are open to everyone.
In the midst of working towards stability, Marion experienced very heavy loss, all within a short time frame. In January, his younger sister passed away in a tragic accident. “Being the older sibling, I’ve always given direction to other siblings, but I couldn’t function, sleep, or talk without breaking down,” Marion remembers. In the next month, Marion lost two additional family members. Working through the emotions of loss was difficult, but he was able to lean on Good Sam and our partnering churches to find hope in the darkness. Even though he was far from family, he never felt alone.
Utilizing Resources
Through his journey, Marion has utilized many of the resources that Good Sam has to offer our participants. He was able to take advantage of the Match Savings resource and is currently working towards obtaining one of our Microloans. With a microloan, Marion will be able to obtain more reliable transportation so he can get to and from work more efficiently.
On to Affordable
Since he first started, Marion has moved on to our Affordable Housing Residental property. He was one of the first to move into Good Sam’s new property on 214 St. Mary’s Street in Phoenixville, PA! What’s next?
“The end goal is to re-establish myself and to try to reach my full potential. I want to further my education and get a degree. I’m 53 now but it’s not too old. I still have a lot of learning potential. All my kids had college accessible to them. Now I can focus on me and getting where I need to be and keep an eye on retirement.” – Marion
