Jay and Lisa

Jay and Lisa's life took a turn...for the better.

On her way into work one morning, Ebony, one of our Street Outreach and Engagement Specialists, noticed a parked car at our Maywood office. Inside was a sleeping man with three small children. She knocked on the window and invited them in. He had no idea that the place he had parked before dawn was right outside our daytime Support Center in Maywood. Life took a turn.

Lisa, the children's mother worked days and Jay worked nights at the same motel but they could not find an affordable apartment that would accommodate a family with three boys—all under the age of five—and Lisa was pregnant with her fourth.

Staff knew staying in the PADS Emergency Shelter with so many small children was not ideal, and mom would need a place to rest and recover after childbirth. Luckily the Coach House at Sojourner House would soon be open.  After a few nights in a hotel, the family moved in. There, they found a place where the kids could run around and take naps with mom close by in the kitchen. It was exactly what Lisa, Jay and their boys needed—a temporary solution to turn their life around. 

Within 2 months, permanent housing was identified and the employer of both parents arranged to transfer them to a location closer to their new apartment. With the help of many hands, the family was ready to move from the Coach House into a place of their own. A few days later, a new family was moved into the Coach House.

Together—we can disrupt homelessness. 

Please donate to our #GivingTuesday 2019 Coach House Campaign.