Jornay | A Chair-ity Success Story
Jornay is the proud recipient of Chair-ity’s services. At just 19 years old, this is her third attempt at beginning independent living. With two jobs and a relationship with the Bridges Program, she was finally able to sign her first lease on a studio apartment in downtown Cleveland. She works as a patient aide at Cleveland Clinic and moonlights as an Amazon warehouse worker, but says that both together offer her a stable income. Before finding this apartment, she was staying with her sister who lives on Tri-C’s campus. She didn’t want to get in the way of her studies and college life, so she eventually moved out and stayed in a hotel, which adds up fast. She admitted that these living arrangements had put her “in the red.”
We find these struggles common amongst the young adults we serve. Finding somewhere to live poses many difficulties for someone aging out of the foster system:
Being under 21 without a co-signer.
Having no credit experience.
Having no prior renting experience due to age.
Having no past pay stubs to prove income requirements due to age, just starting work or bouncing between jobs (not to mention that most jobs require a place of residence in order to fill out new-hire paperwork - a catch 22 in itself).
These are all normal requirements for renting an apartment from a reputable landlord, yet for someone with no family support these are roadblocks that can lead to homelessness.
The Bridges Program and government housing programs like CMHA can be a big resource for aged-out foster youth when it comes to housing, but these services often have long waiting periods and other criteria of their own. By the time they are referred to our services, they have already found stable housing thanks in huge part to our referring partners, but we aim to turn shabby into chic, empty into full, and give them a glimpse of the light at the end of the tunnel!
Chair-ity paired Jornay up with a design volunteer, and together they curated a new relaxing space for her to call home. Her vision is seafoam green and beige, like a warm day at the beach, and she has some DIY projects in mind to make her space even cozier. Chair-ity was able to deliver her a loveseat, armchair, coffee table, end table, dresser, night stand, lamp, new bed, and miscellaneous kitchen items. Jornay said that without Chair-ity’s services she was going to have to wait a long time to be able to slowly fill her apartment with furniture. Before our delivery, she had no furniture of her own and had slept on the tile floor with a squishmallow pillow. Despite the various moves and lack of bed, she has stayed on track with work and other Bridges requirements and has a bright, beachy future ahead of her!
