Recently, St. Joseph the Worker had the pleasure of assisting Margaret.  Before the summer of 2006, Margaret had never experienced homelessness. She worked for 9 years as a phlebotomist and had always been able to maintain a steady income and stable residence. When the nursing home she worked for suddenly closed, she was not able to find another job quickly enough to pay rent. Not knowing what else to do, Margaret moved into a motel, which quickly drained her resources.

Margaret came to the Human Services Campus for help and was overwhelmed when she saw so many homeless people and realized she was one of them. When she came into St. Joseph the Worker’s office, she filled out an application and met with a job developer.  Margaret would need lots of encouragement and basic resources.  St. Joseph the Worker gave Margaret computer access to search job postings, a voicemail for potential employers to contact her, and transportation to complete applications and attend interviews.  With the help of St. Joseph the Worker job developers, Margaret found employment as a bus driver.  It was a change from the medical field, but Margaret found she truly enjoyed the work.

Margaret has been working for over six months and St. Joseph the Worker assisted her with a few move-in costs so that she could live in an apartment.  Since then, she has been able to save up enough to purchase a car and put a down payment on her own home!  Margaret is an active participant in the Client Follow-Up Program and enjoys meeting other clients for support, while learning about goal-setting and budgeting. 

Margaret gave St. Joseph the Worker much more than we gave her.  She shared her wisdom, love and joy with us freely.  She evens stops in to the office sometimes to share a treat with the staff and clients of St. Joseph the Worker.  To Margaret, nothing happens without a reason. “This has all been a blessing in disguise,” Margaret says of her hardships last summer.

When Joe was 22 years old, he was convicted of felony counterfeiting and sentenced to federal prison. He spent 22 years and 7 months (more than half of his life) in “super-max” detention; allowed out of his cell only 1 hour per day. When Joe was released from prison in the winter of 2006, he made his way to Arizona, found the emergency shelter and was referred to St. Joseph the Worker.

Joe’s interaction with St. Joseph the Worker began as some do: frustrating and depressing. Joe struggled through an intake interview full of challenging questions: education? – no high school diploma; work history? – Joe never held a legal job; references? – after his felony conviction, Joe lost family and peer ties. The only people he knew were his public defender and his parole officer. The world had changed dramatically in the past 22 years, as had job searching. Joe was under extreme stress and anxiety.

One day he broke down, reporting that he felt like giving up. He was considering committing a crime so he could go back to jail where he knew how to survive. The staff of St. Joseph the Worker offered support and compassion through Joe’s struggle.  After a few more visits with Job Developers and completing the St. Joseph the Worker Job/Life Skills class, Joe was equipped with interview clothing, transportation, a resume with a telephone number and mailing address, that boasted attributes such as: organized, punctual, hard-working - with welding experience (something he learned as a boy).

Eight days after coming to St. Joseph the Worker, Joe landed a job with a major construction company in town. His outlook changed 180 degrees. He now had hope and a new course to pursue. Joe will continue to receive follow-up services from St. Joseph the Worker including a monthly bus pass, work essentials and hopefully soon, deposit assistance for his own apartment. Joe will also participate in “peer-support” networking events where he will meet others that have come through similar experiences and are working on maintaining a positive, independent life style.