This story is shared by Miriam’s House in Lynchburg

After more than 30 years of doing things for everyone else, Janice came to Miriam’s House to do something for herself. She saw the success of her daughters who were former residents of Miriam’s House and realized that an opportunity existed for her to develop the skill set necessary to achieve her goal of self-sufficiency. Over the course of six months at Miriam’s House, Janice received support and guidance to find employment, assistance in developing financial goals, was connected to other resources in the Lynchburg community, and perhaps most importantly found housing.

Through on-site case management services, Janice received assistance locating housing. Janice set up meetings with landlords and toured apartments in the community. She met weekly with her case manager to discuss items such as rent, safe neighborhoods, price of utilities, access to her work and so on. Her ability to save money throughout her stay at Miriam’s House allowed her to pay a security deposit, electrical deposit and first month’s rent without difficulty.

Today, Janice is safely housed and her lists of accomplishments have continued to grow. She is working full-time in a state position and has benefits including insurance, retirement and paid vacations. She is now looking forward to completing her GED, providing her the opportunity to further her educational goal of achieving certification in the nursing/medical field of study. Janice stated that her 17 years of sobriety provides her the motivation to meet life’s daily challenges and her motto is “don’t ever give up, no matter how bad.”

Janice will still stay connected to Miriam’s House through a newly launched “After Care Support Group” for residents who secure permanent housing.