BRIDGET'S SAMARITAN STORY:
FINDING HOPE, HEALING, AND A PLACE TO CALL HOME

Bridget came to us in January of 2016, after years of difficulty. She was recovering from cancer and in an unhealthy living situation, among other things. She needed help getting groceries, so a neighbor told her about Samaritan Community.

“I’m a person of great faith, but I must say, when I walked through the doors of Samaritan Community, I was in a really low place,” she recalls.

 She received the food she needed and some new clothes from our Clothing Shop, where she almost immediately started helping out, without even thinking about it. Bridget’s natural inclination to help, along with her fashion sense and ease with people was noticed by the Shop’s volunteer manager, Judith, who asked Bridget if she would become a regular volunteer. Fast forward to today and Bridget now volunteers every week as a clothing advisor to her fellow Samaritan members.

“Bridget is a godsend to the Clothing Shop,” says Judith, Clothing Shop manager. “She is organized, likes to keep busy, and is good with our shoppers.”

It was then through Samaritan Community’s newly-created “Housing Stability Pilot Program” that Bridget’s life really began to transform. Through the program, which provides significant investment for qualified members to obtain or retain affordable housing, Bridget found an apartment of her own.

“My friends and family at Samaritan helped me with every aspect of my apartment…the furniture, bedding, microwave, and more,” Bridget says. “Being here uplifted my spirits and made me start caring about life again. I felt fully alive for the first time since my illness.”

And although Bridget has lived through years of real difficulty and pain, she is positive about where she is now and where she is going.

“Looking back on it all now, I see that I was called to Samaritan Community. I was meant to be here so I could heal,” she says.