I recently found myself in a conversation with a friend about my job as the Shelter Program Manager at One SAFE Place. My friend asked thoughtful questions about my work, especially about the first meeting with a client who is seeking shelter.
To help someone outside of my world understand, I used the analogy of experiencing a catastrophic event such as an earthquake, tornado, flood, or fire. I know that because of the fires our community has experienced, using fire as the analogy can be upsetting, but it is also the most real way I can find to truly understand what our clients experience. This is not to minimize those experiencing real devastation from fires, but to illustrate the plight of our clients. If the idea of fire is too hard, this may be a place to stop reading. But if you are willing, understanding the path our clients take is critical to understanding the essential services offered by One SAFE Place.
Imagine there is a fire at your door. You have no time to pack. You only have the clothes on your back. You grab your children and run. Your sole focus is escaping the fire. Your only thought is survival. ‘We must make it out alive’ is the only sentence repeating itself in your mind. Most of us would be naturally terrified. Our anxiety would be through the roof. Your racing heart does not slow down until you have reached safety. Then the reality of the loss sets in. Personal belongings, security, certainty. Followed by the question of where you will live now- now that your belongings are gone, and your home is lost. These thoughts begin to overwhelm your mind. You hope your finances will carry you through an experience like this. That insurance you put in place would help you reestablish what has been lost. It may come through and it may replace some items, yet there will be things that it cannot replace. Pain it cannot erase, devastating loss that will linger and never truly leave you.
Now imagine the fire didn’t reach your home suddenly. Instead, it has been raging around you for months, even years. Burning you repeatedly. Again, and again this cycle continues. You have done your best to keep your children from getting burned, to protect them. And maybe you have successfully protected their skin, but the likelihood is that they have at least witnessed you being burned, witnessed you in pain- again and again, helpless to do anything.
You find a window, a chance, and with only the clothes on your back, you are finally able to escape. This time however, you have no funds to meet your current needs. You have no insurance to replace the home and items lost. It’s just you with no idea what tomorrow holds and no support or resources to turn to.
The fog from this trauma sets in. The hopelessness. The loneliness. The fear. The only thing you have to hold onto is the hope of safety for you and your children. That you might be able to finally breath clear air and say…we are safe.
We. Are. Safe.
It feels important to paint this picture for you because prior to working at One SAFE Place, I did not comprehend the true fallout that our clients face when they are brave enough to escape domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking. Our team approaches every person we serve with the mindset that they are experiencing some level of the above description, and we are their current safe place. Understanding this reality gives us perspective. And perspective gives us the opportunity to better empathize and support clients in these desperate situations.
At One SAFE Place, we serve hundreds of clients in our emergency shelter each year. More than half of our shelter residents are children who have witnessed awful moments with parents and loved ones. Through One SAFE Place and Children’s Legacy Center, we offer services with emotional support for adults, programs for children, case management, and transitional housing opportunities.
As a shelter team, we believe in the hope of a better future for our clients. We work to see, understand, and actively listen to our clients. We support them, meeting them exactly where they are on their journey. We understand the tenderness of their experience and the devastation of everything lost. We strive to be the bridge those we serve need to get from where they were to where they are going. Here, they can find hope and know they are not alone.
Dylan, Shelter Program Manager
Community support and understanding are vital to the missions of One SAFE Place and Children’s Legacy Center. The services we provide are more than just resources and temporary refuge; they are a lifeline for individuals and families rebuilding their lives after the devastation of child abuse, sexual assault, domestic violence, and human trafficking. By helping to educate individuals about the trauma those we serve endure and the complex journey they face towards healing and stability, we foster a more compassionate community that stands together against abuse.
Your involvement, whether through volunteering, donations, or simply spreading awareness, directly impacts the lives of those seeking safety and a fresh start. Together, we can be the supportive network that transforms hope into reality, ensuring that every person who walks through our doors knows they are not alone and that brighter days are ahead.
