Today, guest blogger, Tara Johnson will be sharing about her
work at The Nancy Devereux Center in the Empire District of Coos Bay at the
“Y”. Tara is passionate about helping those who are less fortunate which
she ultimately believes could be any of us on any given day. She is the
director at The Devereux Center where they assist the mentally ill, the homeless and
veterans with their daily needs. The Devereux Center offers free breakfast, lunches, showers, laundry services and much more. Currently, the center is
only open 3 days a week; Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
This week at the Nancy Devereux Center we served many clients
with varied needs. A couple of clients stand out. “John” started
coming to the center in February he wanted to be sober but was
struggling while living on the streets. We helped him make some
arrangements to be dry and off the streets. He came in faithfully to
volunteer and worked hard. Over time he made connections for an opportunity to be admitted into a program. We were sad to see "John" leave, but very optimistic that he would return clean and sober. This week, he
returned with a twinkle in his eye, a smile on his face and goals in place for
long term housing. THIS is why I do what I do.
Another of our recent success stories is a family from the
inland area. They came here with plans of a job, but the employment fell
through. This family arrived needing supplies for their little child.
Within 12 hours the Coos County Facebook family stepped up and helped with
those needs. We were able to work with them and provide stability while
they searched for employment and housing. This week they moved into an
apartment and one of the family members has a part time job. This is
again The Devereux Center in action. We don’t work miracles we just
network, coach and assist in the implementation of goals.
We would love to have you come and visit us. We are
busy all of the time and I can never guarantee what kind of situations might
occur during a visit, but I can promise that we will do our best to show you a
thriving center with a diverse population who are very grateful for the
services we provide. We always welcome gentle used clothing, tarps,
camping gear and quality canned goods. We also desire monthly financial
contributors to assist us in being open 5 days a week.
Thanks for taking the time to read and please feel free to
contact me, Tara Johnson at 541-888-3202
or via email, ndc.coosbay@gmail.com
