The making of a real home
I will never forget meeting Heather. It was my first time at the Philadelphia Furniture Bank as an intern of Pathways to Housing PA, and I was eager to see our work in action. As you may know, the furniture bank is an incredible organization by Pathways to Housing PA that allows low-income families to receive furniture for free. At Pathways, we work to house homeless Philadelphians, however we quickly learned that four walls do not make a home. A house without any furniture is not really a home at all. This is the story of Heather, and her journey in making her house a home.
Whenever someone comes to the furniture bank to pick out their furniture, we start by asking them about their current living situation. This, for me, is an eye-opening experience. Being a 22-year old recently out of college, I am used to living in places that are far from the Taj Mahal. However, living in a home with no bed, tables, or chairs was a foreign concept to me.
Heather entered the furniture bank and was naturally beaming. You could tell she was excited. We greeted Heather, shook hands, and sat down. Then, the questions began.
“So Heather, before we look at the furniture, we have a couple questions for you,” we said. She smiled.
We asked, “What currently is in your apartment?”
“Air mattresses and a fridge,” she answered.
“Well, we will definitely need to get you some beds then! How many people are in your house?”
“It is me and my three children.”
I asked, “How old are your kids?” I smiled; I have always loved children.
“They are 17, 8, and 5. My oldest attends the Workshop School.” She was beaming with pride. She reached into her bag, and took out what seemed to be a line of photos from a photo booth. “Here they are,” she pointed.
A grin came across my face. “They look wonderful,” I said.
Next, we asked, “Where in the apartment have you been eating your meals?”
“On the floor.”
“Well, we will need to get you some tables and chairs!”
“I would love that,” she said.
While we started to prepare the paperwork, Emily, another intern of Pathways, and I began to ask Heather more about herself. We learned that she was a teacher at a school from 1st to 8th grade. In fact, one of her children attended her school! We laughed as she told us more about her children. It was evident that Heather was not just a mother, but a stellar mother. In fact, she was stellar altogether. It was hard to imagine her eating meals off of the floor and living in an apartment that was, for the most part, empty.
When Heather left the Furniture Bank that day, she did not leave empty-handed. Heather left with a new full-size bed, three new twin beds, a table, chairs (including her favorite high chair with a special engraving in its backing), a lamp, artwork, a sofa, and floor pillows. This is the power that the furniture bank has. The furniture bank has the ability to give loving, hard-working people like Heather exactly what they deserve: a real home.
About the Author:
Gracie Harrington graduated in 2015 from Wake Forest University with a B.A. in Politics and International Affairs, where she served as President of the Gay-Straight Student Alliance, a Resident Advisor, President's Aide, member of Alpha Delta Pi sorority, and recipient of the 2014 Martin Luther King Jr. "Building the Dream Award." In 2015, Gracie was awarded the Campus Pride Voice & Action Sorority/Fraternity Award for her work in LGBTQ activism. Gracie hopes to have a career in development work so everyone can have the opportunity to flourish in their life.
