A Story Full of Thanks: By Stacy Sackett

          My name is Stacy Sackett. I’m a mother of six children, foster mother of four children, and a grandmother of one. I’m also the new Lead Cashier/Supervisor of the Ashtabula, OH Goodwill store. I wanted to write a little something that I am very passionate about: homelessness.  Everyday, someone or some family is becoming homeless right here in our county. As a community, we need to do something to help this problem. I know of what I speak, having recently been there myself.

          On May 5, 2016, my family of 13 became homeless due to circumstances beyond our control.  We had five days to remove everything that we owned from our house. We had nowhere to go, and who wants to take in 13 people? NO ONE! Thankfully, we had a family member who owned 50 acres of land who gave us permission to live on his property in our tents. This is where we resided for three long, hot months. Living in the woods was not easy, but I was thankful that we had tents, canopies, a port-a-potty, and a grill. Not all homeless people have the luxuries that we had. I am grateful for all that we did have, right down to the well water that we found on the property, and the woods for giving us shade from the hot sun.  

           Even though I appreciated the little things, depression was settling in. I was homeless, jobless, and worried about my family with cold weather quickly approaching.  So, every day, I got up, took a sponge bath, and started placing my résumé everywhere I could. My biggest hope was Goodwill.  I really felt like I needed to work at Goodwill because it is a job that allows me to give back. After three long months of searching every day, I got the call from Goodwill, and we finally found a new house to rent.  I’m thankful to say that we are now out of the woods.

          As you are reading this, there are approximately fifty homeless people/families living in the gulf in Ashtabula. We, as a community, need to help. Donate to Goodwill where people can get affordable household items. Donate to food pantries. Donate blankets, flashlights, batteries, and whatever it takes to make life easier for these families.

          My advice for people in the same situation is to first of all: keep your head up. Don’t let depression get you down. Call upon resources to help you. Catholic Charities, Children’s Services, and food pantries located in Ashtabula, Jefferson and Conneaut are there to assist you. All of these places can help.