STORIES
At our shelter, the heartwarming stories from our employees and volunteers truly inspire us all. From the dedicated staff who go above and beyond, to the passionate volunteers who share their time and love, each experience highlights the profound impact we can make together. These stories remind us of the joy and fulfillment that comes from helping those in need, and they motivate us to continue our mission with unwavering commitment.
FRYING PAN
Becky Wagner,
Founding Mother
One thing that always sticks with me, the women, three of them, were sitting at the table eating and one of the volunteers came back and said to me, Anne is having a hard night tonight and she’s really causing a problem. Could you come out here and help us diffuse this. I walked out of the kitchen, I had been drying dishes, and I had a frying pan in my hand. And I walked up and leaned over quietly to Anne to essentially say, hey Anne what’s going on? She pushed me away and literally fell back away off of her chair. And I said to her, What is wrong, Anne? She said, “The last time I saw someone with a frying pan, they hit me in the head.” It never occurred to me, I was going out to quietly say, hey Anne what’s going on? That the pan in my hand was a trigger for her. It frightened her. It brought to her a terrible time. And so I’ve always tried to remember that we just don’t know what someone’s bringing to us when they come to us or when we encounter them. And that can happen in everyday life. We just don’t know the pain or the joy that they bring. We make no assumptions.
I had this commitment that I never give cash money to homeless people who ask me for money. I just never do it. And so one night, Suzanne came to me and said, “I need $15.37.” And I said, “Suzanne, you know none of the volunteers bring money to the shelter. I can’t help you, I’m sorry.” I said, “What do you need $15.37 for?” And she had a list for cough syrup, throat lozenges, some kind of toothpaste and one other thing, I think it was a cold tablet of some kind. She did have a bad cold. She said, “I just have to go to the pharmacy and get this.” Well, I couldn’t stand it. She’s the only woman I have ever given cash money to. So I gave her $16. And 10 years later, she came back to the church, into the church secretary, and I think it was Judy Taylor who called me and she said, “Becky, Suzanne is here and she says she has something she has to give you.” I said, this is when I was downtown working for the senator. I said, “Judy, I can’t possibly stop what I’m doing. Would you ask her if it’s ok if you opened what it is?” And she opened it and it was $16. It was $16. And so I said to Judy, “Please tell her that the next time I see you I’ll accept the $16 but it’s ok with me if she’d like to just donate it to the shelter.” Absolutely not. It had to come to me. So Judy took her hand and said, “I promise you I will give Becky this money.” And she did.
$15.37
GLASS OF MILK
Kathy Michaelian,
Founding Mother
It was about 20 years ago, a woman at Rainbow asked for a glass of milk. So I sent one of the young teenage boys to get a glass of milk for her. And he brought out the glass of milk and she said, “I will not take that milk from him. You have to give me that milk.” So we went back into the kitchen, he gave me the milk and I went out with the milk. And I thought, “You know, she should have just been grateful to get the milk. What is the big deal?” And then I began to realize quickly, and I think about this all the time when I come into these situations. These women control so little. They have so little control over so much of their lives that they control what they can. To us sometimes it looks silly, but to them it’s important when there’s a loss of control. Every time I come into these situations now where I think, why is this person dealing like this? I think, “So much of their life is out of control, this is a little thing that they can control.” And it’s really taught me a life lesson. That is one of the most important life lessons I’ve learned, especially in dealing with people. When you’re trying to figure out why they’re behaving the way they are, sometimes it’s because they lack control in so many places in their lives. And what we think of as silly, really, it’s important to them. The more I thought of it, I thought, “You know what? This is all she can control. How she gets this glass of milk. She’s sleeping where we tell her to sleep, she’s eating what we tell her to eat, she goes off to do whatever she can do all day to survive. And she really controls nothing of her life.” And that’s what made me think, “You know what, this is what she could control, and good for her.”
Several seasons ago, on opening day, I helped serve dinner, then grabbed a plate and went out to sit with the ladies. I sat across from a young lady who was waiting to be called for her intake. She was crying. I asked if she was OK, and she replied, “Yes, but I’m scared, I’ve never been homeless before.” I said to her “If you have to be in a homeless shelter, Rainbow Place is the place to be.” I told her about the staff, volunteers, our meals, services we provide, and most importantly, the safety at Rainbow Place. When it was her time to go up for intake, she seemed to be a little relieved. The next day I was back at the shelter, and she came to me, to thank me, for reassuring her about Rainbow Place, and she wanted me to know that she had a good night. That young lady didn’t stay with us long, and I hope that she was able to move on to a better place. Stories like that really touched my heart, knowing that we provide a warm, safe, and comfortable place for homeless ladies.
CALMING A NEW GUEST
Louise Long,
Food Coordinator
RUN-IN AT THE MALL
I saw a woman that was at our shelter for two seasons in the mall one afternoon. She saw me, immediately came over, gave me a big hug and told me that she had gotten a place. She told me she was doing well and wanted to thank me and the staff for all that we did for her at Rainbow Place. She had the biggest smile on her face as she proudly told me that she was at the mall to buy an iron, and a few other household items. I was so happy for her.
I was there one night when the volunteers were serving London broil, baked potato, and broccoli as the entrée. I expressed my surprise at the London broil, the volunteer said to me “ I eat this at home, why wouldn’t I bring this to serve the ladies?” I smiled, excepted a plate, and sat down and had dinner with the ladies. Our volunteers not only provide a good meal, but they make our ladies feel special. Rainbow Place could not be successful without the dedicated and compassionate people that come to help each and every night.
LONDON BROIL
FULL HOUSE BUT LETTING IN ONE MORE
Bob Taylor,
Shelter Coordinator
One night, it was a very snowy night, and I walked downstairs to answer the doorbell and there was a woman standing there. And she just had on light clothes and regular shoes. And there were about 3-4 inches of snow on the ground and she’s standing there and she says, “Do you have a bed for me tonight?” We were full but something just sort of struck me so I said, “Yeah, come on in.”
We brought her in and put her up on a cot and she slept on the cot that evening. To me, that gives me chills to this day to think that, if we haven’t done anything else in the 38 years of Rainbow, if we helped that one woman that night, that’s what God put us on the earth for.
Because of the weather, we accommodated her for a few nights. We were full but continued to accommodate her with an open heart.
After a year, or maybe it is 2 years, our clients are allowed to return to volunteer at the shelter. And they do. One of our staff now is a former client. I’ll call her Becky though that isn’t her name. I have a very tender memory about a night this past season when, due to one client’s recalcitrance and unruliness, the police were called in. It was in the middle of the night and as I walked around our great room where the women were trying to sleep in their cots, amidst the turmoil and mayhem I overheard a small voice say, “I wish Becky was here.” I could have felt jealous that this woman didn’t feel safe and comforted by MY presence. I felt touched that this former client, now staff, was so cherished by this client that the client would wish she, Becky, were present during a scary situation. Becky, who knows the fear and helplessness and vulnerability of homelessness provides a sense of security and kindness and safety to the women in our organization. I was happy to know that we have a staff who can give this. This is a goal I strive towards.
FORMER GUEST, NOW STAFF
Mary Ramirez-DeArellano,
Overnight Staff
CONNECTED WITH A GUEST
Sharon Dunda,
Volunteer
There are some women you meet who you automatically connect with. One lady in particular drew me in. She was witty and always filled with joy. She always had a story or funny anecdote to share when she came in. We had the same middle name and she would call me her sister. I knew she had struggled with alcohol in the past but she was working to mend her relationships with her family. I looked forward to seeing her each time I volunteered. Then one day she was gone. I was so afraid that she had slipped back into old habits. Timidly I asked the staff where she was afraid to hear the answer. With a big smile they informed me that she had left to move into her own apartment and that her daughter and son had come to help her.
I cook the women what I cook at home. The women should get the same meal I eat at home. Just because they are homeless doesn't mean they can't get a good home-cooked meal.
I firmly believe that just because the women are homeless, it doesn’t mean that they can’t have a good home-cooked meal. I believe that anyone can be a life event away from being homeless or needing assistance from the community. I enjoy preparing a good home-cooked meal for the women such as: London Broil, Meatloaf, Baked Chicken with Sauce, Rice Pilaf, Homemade Mac and Cheese etc. There was one season the women gave me the name “Meatloaf Lady” because they enjoyed it so much, they wanted me to bring it every time I volunteered.
I believe a home-cooked meal made from love is good for the soul. Seeing the women smile because they enjoyed a meal I cooked makes me smile too.
WHAT SHE SERVES FOR DINNER
Kim Carter,
Volunteer
HOW THEY APPROACH DINNER SERVICE
Myrtis Brame,
Shelter Coordinator
We try to make dinner such that the women at the shelter will feel that it is a special meal. We rarely do a fast food-type dinner. It’s more sit-down family-type dinner arrangement that we put together for the women. And sometimes we might make it special. We might do a crab cake dinner. We try to make it as nice as they would have had, had they been at a restaurant, where they were having a dinner out. So we take a lot of pride in preparing for our designated night for service at the shelter.
My priority and my reward comes from seeing other people feel comfortable and helping others. So for me, every dinner meal, I try to make it special. And the reward is really mine. Not so much that the dinner is so great for the women. They always compliment us because they know we put a lot of effort into it, but I get reward from knowing that these women feel we see them and that we care about them and that they are just like us. And that we set the table for them just as we would want the table set for us, for a special dining that we would have. So for me, the reward is being with women who may not have had the access to resources that I’ve had access to, but I see them as my sisters and that’s my delight and my reward, that’s all I look for out of having this experience with Rainbow Place.
We provide Thanksgiving dinner to the ladies. When we were gathered around the table and we were trying to give blessings, one of the ladies said to us, can I make a suggestion? What if we all were to say what we’re grateful for, for Thanksgiving before we decide to eat this wonderful meal. And it was amazing as we went around the table, each one of us who was convening that group went around the table to say what we were grateful for. Just an example, one lady said, “I just drove here from Atlanta. I had car problems along the way. I’m leaving a domestically violent spouse and I am so grateful to be able to sit down and have shelter over my head and be able to sit down with other women to a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner.”
And as we went around the room, the women shared their stories in a grateful way. And that’s what they had to say, about what it meant to be together with other women at Rainbow Place. Sometimes we don’t think about how small things can impact people. And she was the reason for things to come forth in the discussions as we went around. Quick little expressions of gratitude about what it meant to have shelter over your head at Thanksgiving and a meal to sit down to, like other people were sharing wherever they were on Thanksgiving.
THANKSGIVING AT THE SHELTER
Mary Ramirez-DeArellano,
Overnight Staff