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When a person is homeless, it means more than not having adequate housing. It may also mean that a person is hungry, in need of clean clothes, living in their car, dealing with crises of family, abuse, illness, mental illness or addiction. Sometimes a person is alone, but frequently a homeless person is a parent who is also seeking help with their children.
The Salvation Army provides shelter to an average of 325 people in upstate New York each day. The Salvation Army’s shelters in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Schenectady offer care, support and hope to the homeless, whether it’s men, women, veterans or teenagers. Crisis counseling, comprehensive social work support services and linkages to community resources are provided to secure and maintain permanent housing and address the issues that led to homelessness.
Here’s a story about how a Salvation Army shelter and transitional housing helped a 16 year old.
At 16, Katy was desperate to escape her situation at home. A counselor at school told her about Booth House, Syracuse Salvation Army’s short-term crisis shelter for runaway and homeless youth. Katy eventually took her counselor’s advice and found herself at Booth House’s doorstep. Katy recalls “It brought me to tears when I realized that I was going to be able to sleep in a bed where I was safe and a room where no one could bother me the entire night.”
Although Booth House offers family counseling and mediation to reunite runaways with their parents, it became immediately clear that was not an option for Katy. Years of sexual abuse from her father meant that Katy now needed to find a new permanent home, where she could begin the long road to recovery. With no other family in the area, housing options were very limited.
Katy transferred from Booth House and moved into The Salvation Army Transitional Apartment and Parenting Center (TAPC). The TAPC is a long-term residence for homeless young women, primarily pregnant and parenting. While Katy was not pregnant, because of her young age, it was necessary to connect her with a program where she could benefit from 24-hour staff support and supervision. At the TAPC, Katy was able to live in a stable, supportive environment while attending school and also learning basic life skills such as cooking, cleaning and managing finances.
Before being introduced to The Salvation Army, Katy’s father had convinced her that she was the only person to blame for all of the bad things that happened in her life. Today, Katy has left that type of thinking far behind. Katy is now 19 years old and has recently moved out of the TAPC and into her own apartment. While living at the TAPC, Katy earned her GED and began a full time job.
Katy has also become a strong voice to help young people in crisis. When asked how Katy was able to deal with such adversity in her life, Katy said: “If it hadn’t been for The Salvation Army’s programs and staff, I’m not sure what I would have done to escape my situation. I was desperate and they helped me each and every day. Those people were awesome.”
As we celebrate our 150th anniversary, we celebrate what God has done through us; thanks to our volunteers and supporters like you, we continue to do the most good in every community.
Tags: Faces of The Army