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 St. Ben's Community Meal helps in many ways....
Formerly Homeless, He Now Has Hope & Job!
Capuchin Apartment Resident Earns Job Training Opportunity
“I spent 10 years incarcerated and when I got out I learned it’s no longer 3 strikes and out, it’s just one strike for anyone who’s done time,” Deon said. A resident of the Capuchin Apartments and guest at St. Ben’s Community Meal, Deon thanks the Capuchins for helping him to get his life back on track.
“Deon has been accepted into a transitional employment program,” said Eric Dykes-Cole with a smile. “He is going to become one of the Guest House’s Residential Managers. “My hope is that he will do well and move into a higher paying position. That is a huge change for someone who was sleeping on a bench at the corner of 7th Street and Wisconsin Avenue last summer!” St. Ben's Community Meal is the charity sponsor of the apartment building housing many formerly homeless individuals.
Deon said, “I see Br. Dave every time he is here. I can’t thank him enough because I have an apartment filled with donated furniture. I really believe this is Christian faith in action.” “I also go to the Capuchins’ other ministry, the House of Peace. I feel such relief when I step inside those doors. I go there for food when I begin to run out. And I love to visit their bread table, they have some awesome bread.”
Deon paused and then he said, “I have had 17 years of homelessness starting when I was a teenager. I know everything I have received is a blessing. I want to thank the Capuchins and all their donors for supporting me as I have gone from a bench to a furnished apartment and now a job in less than a year.”
Br. Dave Schwab said, “Deon’s story illustrates that it takes many people to help someone moving from homelessness to independent living. Staff, volunteers, St. Ben’s donors and the residents themselves come together to form a real community. Our mission is to build “sister-brotherhood” in the world and that happens at the Capuchin Apartments with the support of our donors.”
Interested in volunteering? To learn how go to: http://www.stbensmilwaukee.org/index.php/meal/assist/volunteer/.
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