February 4, 1998
Program at homeless shelter brightens up rooms and lives
By Garret Leiva
Herald staff writer
A fresh coat of paint can brighten up a room, but it can also brighten up a life.
Such has been the case with the Goodwill Inn Homeless Shelter's "Adopt-A-Room" program, which has transformed rooms and lives through painting, cleaning and general sprucing up.
The 13-month-old program began as a way for the 38-bed facility near Division and 14th streets to increase community awareness of the shelter, coordinator James Rogers said. Program supporters also believed that by providing cheerful and comfortable surroundings, residents would concentrate less on their anxieties and more on their goals to re-establish independence.
"Many of the people who stay here are trying to mend broken areas of their lives and this gives them a place that feels like a home and not some drab old room," said Rogers, a former homeless person himself. "It gives them positive motivation."
Motivated also describes Tim Manzer and his group of young volunteers from the Bible Baptist Church of Traverse City. The youth group is one of several local and regional churches that have adopted a short- or long-term room at the Goodwill Inn.
Volunteers from the youth group have used paint brush and elbow grease to create " the prettiest room" at the shelter, according to Rogers. Sponge painting, plastering the ceiling, buying a new mattress and curtains are just some of the improvements to Room 15. The youth group, which pays for supplies through fund-raisers, also has bought a dresser and new light fixtures for the adopted room.
While the revamped rooms lift the spirits of occupants, they also have helped lower maintenance costs for the Goodwill Inn. Volunteer hours spent painting and cleaning carpets have deferred upkeep costs of $400 to $500 per room, Rogers said. It is a savings that adds up for the 19-year-old Goodwill Inn, which provided emergency shelter, food and job services for more than 370 people last year. The shelter is part of Goodwill Industries of Northern Michigan Inc., a nonprofit that provides employment, rehabilitation and work training to the disadvantaged and operates several thrift stores.
At the shelter, the success of the "Adopt-A-Room" program goes beyond dollars and cents. Lives have been affected by Room 15, Rogers noted, as 70 percent of those that have stayed there are "doing well for themselves after leaving."
The room also has impacted the lives of those who have painted its walls and washed its woodwork. "These kids really feel their hands have helped someone's life," said Manzer, a youth pastor for four years. "It's easy to get excited about traveling to the Appalachia region to help build a house with Habitat for Humanity, but there are as great a needs right in our own neighborhood."
For Manzer's group, the "Adopt-A-Room" program remains a long-term commitment. Already in its second year, the youth group has established new goals for the room, including building a bookshelf that will be stocked with children's readings.
"The kids are proud of the work they have done," Manzer said. "I remember one of them saying that the people might have to stay in a shelter, but they shouldn't feel like they are living in a shelter."