DeeDee’s Room: Time Spent at Harvest House

by Shaelina Holmes

May 14, 2021

Below is a letter from our Young Adult Services Manager with testimony from one of our clients about her experiences as a young adult at Harvest House.

Hi friends,

DeeDee was released from incarceration to the Salvation Army in the middle of March 2020. She began visiting Harvest House’s Youth Drop-in center in May. In July, she moved into a transitional supportive housing unit reserved exclusively for female young adults ages 18-24. Just three months later, she was accepted into the New Heights long-term supportive housing program for young adults.

“DeeDee is a prime example of the way each of our young adult programs reaches this population, and how progress can be made.”

With DeeDee, we work closely with the CTC Support team (Comprehensive Treatment Court through Centerstone Behavioral Health); they visit her weekly ensuring that wrap-around services remain in place! It is truly a pleasure to watch this young lady recognize her own potential, and even better to watch her achieve goals that she has set in place for herself! Her academic achievements are nothing short of inspiring as well. She is a very proud student at SCF racking up straight As in the Spring 2021 semester.

When she moved into New Heights, she decorated her room with canvases that she painted herself. Some were crafted during her time at the drop-in center and one she created while on one of our monthly youth outings. She used an Amazon gift card that was gifted to us through a generous donor and bought things for her room. She takes pride in her space and you can absolutely tell that her room reflects the newfound peace in her life.

With love,
Dayna Camp, Young Adult Services Manager

“My experience with Harvest House has been a life-changer. They have provided me with a home that I can call my own. I also now can maintain a stable schedule at work, school, and socially. With the help of the Harvest House community, there is no telling what you can accomplish. I started off at the Salvation Army, homeless with nowhere to go, and the Harvest House reached out to me with open arms. They assisted me with my needs and desires as a new member and helped put me on the right track. I went from only working at McDonald’s to working at an assisted living facility as a resident’s aide and I am also a freshman in college working towards my AA degree. If it wasn’t for the commitment and patience of the Harvest House community, I wouldn’t have been able to make it this far. My appreciation and gratitude towards this program and the dedicated employees and case managers will forever be in my heart.”