“Was there one point where you realized you had to turn things around for yourself?”

Photos and Interviews by Erik Gould

Yolanda:
“Yes. Before I came to the Amos House I was in another program, it was only for 3 months and I felt I needed more, I needed more stability and more structure to continue in my recovery and so I called the Amos House. Two days after the first program I got in and it was a blessing because I had nowhere else to go. I have a four-year-old daughter and being in this program has helped me become connected to her. Now, my mother has her. This program has helped me put a roof over my head and when my daughter comes I have a room for her to stay.

Her name is Blessing, I’ve come a long way with that little girl. Through the transition program I’m able to work and save money so that when I do get my daughter I’ll be able to take care of her and myself. Working in the restaurant industry wasn’t the field that I first wanted to go into, but I’ve grown to like it. I think I’ll be very successful at it. I’m grateful for this place, I don’t know where I would be without it.”

Denise:
“One night I was lying on my bed and I said you know something? You gotta change your live around. And I just took a chance and went down there [Amos House] and signed up in the program, they took me in, I graduated, and I can’t thank them enough because I’m a different person.

My life has changed and I’m very happy now. I make the bread here, I make all the pastries, cookies, I do the brownies. I think I can move along from here, I hope to start my own catering business. I started the program 6 months ago. I enjoy coming down here, I enjoy my customers. Everything about the place keeps lifting my spirits, keeps on saying: go for more, go for more.”

Tammy:
“Yes, I remember when I stood outside of where we have our groups, outside of the SWAP home it was on a Friday afternoon and I didn’t know if I was going to take a right outside the group home and go up that street and leave, or go across the street and sit in Social Services. And I went across the street and sat in Social Services. I knew at that point that no matter what I was going to stay.

I listened finally to someone else and I listened to what Amos House told me and I’m so glad I did. That was the big turning point for me, I made it through that and it was a really hard day. No matter what, I didn’t leave. I’ve been going though some changes but that’s life, no matter what, I stayed. There should be more Amos Houses in other communities. We need Amos House, something strong is going on in that place, I don’t know what it is, but it is working.”

Andre:
“I was unemployed, had been looking for work. People who cared about me told me about the carpentry program here and about Mr. Scott. They said I should come down here and give it a shot. And that’s what I did. I’ve always been interested in working with my hands and doing construction.

Before we started working here on the cafe, we built all of the counters and tables here, we worked on a house that would use as a shelter for battered women. We put in the windows over there, that’s how we started; they got us hands on immediately. It doesn’t sound like much but putting windows in a house where you know people are going to reside, you know it means something. I kept building from there.”