My name is Janella Kirkman, and I’m the Social Service Manager at Hospitality House. I oversee a team of dedicated case managers, all working to help guests on their journeys back to housing.
Today I’d like to tell you a story about a man I’ll call Jeffrey.
When I met Jeffrey, he was retired, experiencing homelessness, and struggling with alcohol abuse disorder. Jeffrey was housed in 2020, but there was an issue with his housing voucher, and by early 2021 he was struggling to pay his rent. At this point, I stepped in and helped him settle some back rent to start moving forward. With his rent settled, I shifted my focus to working on his health.
Jeffrey’s drinking had been a problem for much of his life, but now in his 70s, he found he depended on alcohol to manage his pain. I worked with him to reduce his drinking so he could start working towards healthier pain management with his doctor. Once he started feeling better, he was inspired to cut back on his smoking as well.
With Jeffrey’s health improving, I began taking him on trips to the bank and the grocery store, helped him schedule doctor appointments, and ensured he had transportation to and from the appointments.
As Jeffrey’s life started to move back on track, he felt it was time to reach out to his estranged son and make amends. Jeffrey began by calling his son regularly, apologizing for his role in their estrangement. He was eventually able to explain to his son why he left, the dangers of his addiction, and apologized for his failures as a father. As Jeffrey’s relationship with his son improved, his son scheduled a visit so Jeffrey could meet his grandson for the first time.
Unfortunately, Jeffrey passed away three days before their visit.
While it’s always hard to lose a guest I’ve grown fond of, I’m so proud of Jeffrey and how far he made it at the end. He was able to improve his quality of life and make amends, allowing him to pass on peacefully. I still think of Jeffrey often and am grateful for the time we had together.
At this time, we’d like to give a huge shout out to Seasoned with Love, the first cook group to return to our kitchen after the two-year suspension of our volunteer program due to COVID-19.
If you would like to volunteer in our kitchen, we are in need of volunteers to prepare meals for the 80 individuals currently in our care. Cook groups plan their own menus, purchase the groceries, prepare the meal in our commercial kitchen, and assist in packaging the meals for transportation to various locations we are serving. Right now, we are looking for additional individual volunteers or volunteer cook groups to cook for our guests. Volunteer slots are available Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 1 pm-3 pm.
Additionally, Hospitality House is currently looking for a few volunteers to help with grocery shopping. Grocery shopping is done daily, Tuesday-Saturday. Volunteers in this position are provided with a grocery list and asked to purchase the items on the list. The volunteer will deliver the groceries to the kitchen to be prepared by our chef. Volunteers will be reimbursed for these special grocery runs; however, any volunteer who would like to sponsor a dinner or grocery run is greatly appreciated. To learn more about our volunteer opportunities, please call (530) 615-0852 or email us at info@hhshelter.org.
We also want to thank all of our community members who have been giving financially in place of donating goods during construction at Utah’s Place. However, we do need a select few items presently:
- NEW Pillows – URGENT NEED
- Twin-sized bedding, including blankets, sheets, pillowcases, and quilts.
To increase safety during construction, donations are no longer being accepted at our shelter. Please drop off your items Monday – Friday, 8:30 am – 5 pm at our admin office, located at 488 Crown Point Circle, Suite 100, Grass Valley, Ca 95945 (the admin office is closed on all major holidays and weekends).
We greatly appreciate the community’s help at such times of uncertainty. In the words of Utah Phillips, “If we all stick together, we’ll get what we need.” Thank you!