Supportive Housing
My Sisters’ Place provides Supportive Housing for low-income individuals and families who were formerly homeless and unable to hold their own lease. Through the Mary Seymour Place Apartments and Sue Ann Shay Place Apartments, we provide affordable housing and support services for those who meet one or more of the following criteria: low income, living with a mental illness, and/or are currently homeless.
The Mary Seymour Place Apartments for single men and women feature 30 one-bedroom units and Sue Anne Shay Place Apartments for families and single people consist of 34 one-, two-, and three-bedroom rental apartments. At both facilities, tenants hold their own leases and voluntary case management and referral/advocacy programs are available on-site.
In addition to our apartment complexes, My Sisters’ Place offers the Scattered Site Program, which provides services to men and women with psychiatric disabilities in their own apartments, “scattered” throughout the Hartford area. These supportive services are designed to help these clients gain and maintain self-sufficiency.
Case Studies
The following case studies illustrate how the services we provide at My Sister’s Place have helped our residents and their families improve their lives.
A Chance to Live as a Human Being
Chris is a 48-year-old high school dropout, the father of six children, and has been a drug addict for over 24 years. Born in 1963, he was first incarcerated in 1979 with a 30-day sentence and was repeatedly incarcerated for drug crimes or violations until 2005. Between 1979 and 2005, his longest period of freedom was from 1995 to 1999.
On his release from prison in 2005, Chris chose to be homeless rather than to bring his addictions into the homes of his grandchildren. After many months of homelessness, Chris began to use the South Park Inn shelter.
After a year, he enrolled in the transitional living program at Tabor House. In 2008, Chris became a resident at The Mary Seymour Apartments. Chris is working on his GED and works at Mary Seymour as a front desk attendant. He is extremely proud that he has been “clean” for five and a half years.
His story may be best told in some of his own words: “Drugs only gave misery…My Sisters’ Place gives me the help I need providing structure, but with independent living.”
Chris and all of those assisted by My Sisters’ Place are very grateful for your generous support.
From Couch Surfing to Certified Assistant Nurse
Two years ago, a single mom in her early 20’s with five kids was “couch surfing” among friends and relatives. You can only imagine the dynamics of this journey. Childcare issues had cost the mom her job, as she was not a reliable worker while depending upon voluntary childcare.
The mom and her children, now aged 2 to 8 years old, moved into the Transitional Living Program. The mother was able to find work at Walmart and enroll in a program to obtain a certified nurse assistant license. Her children flourished in our For the Love of Children Initiative. In addition to the learning aspects of the program, they were able to develop social skills and self esteem that prepared them for school.
They were one of the first families to move into the Sue Ann Shay Apartments. The older children are in school and doing well and the youngest is in subsidized daycare. The mother is working in a nursing facility and plans to attend college part-time to become a teacher.
Building a Better Life
A grandmother is building a better life for her granddaughter at Sue Ann Shay. The grandmother has suffered from mental health and addiction issues, but has been sober for over ten years. They originally became homeless when their landlord raised their rent to an unaffordable level.
They moved in with the great grandmother, in her elderly housing unit. When the great grandmother became ill and passed on, they were left homeless again.
The two of them moved into Sue Ann Shay in November. The grandmother is in counseling and volunteers at a food pantry, with the hope of becoming an employee. The granddaughter attended Hartford Public Schools until June and next year will be in a suburban “choice” school.
The grandmother understands this will not be easy, but she is determined to give her granddaughter every available opportunity to make the most of her life.
My Life Is So Much Better and I Am So Much Healthier
The following is a testimonial from one of our past clients:
“I wanted to take a moment to thank all of you for all the help and assistance you have provided me over the past six years. I am quite sure my life may have gone in a different direction if it weren’t for the ‘Bridge Program.’
You all in one form or another contributed to improving the quality of my life and I am eternally grateful to each one of you. I know I am not the easiest person to work with and you managed to put up with me. That is a true “feather in your cap”. Despite my downfalls, you hung in there with me, which says a great deal about each of you. So, I say again, thank you.
I especially want to thank the Housing Department staff. The staff was there for me each time I called out for help. They were always patient and kind to me, even when I didn’t deserve it. I realize it must be very difficult to work with people who suffer with mental health problems. It takes a special person to work with people like me. My hat is off to the staff!
I hope the road rises up to meet you as you move forward in your career. I wanted you to know how positively you impacted my life. You helped me move away from a very ugly part of my life. My daughter and I were reunited after twelve years this past March. I was accepted in the ‘Shelter Plus Care Program’ two weeks ago.
I have been completely clean and sober since October 2004, when I was hospitalized for severe depression and the wheels were set in motion. That was when my life started to improve and I began to see a glimmer of light at the end of my tunnel. Shortly after, I began getting assistance from Capitol Region and My Sisters’ Place. At the present, my life is so much better and I am so much healthier.
So thank you all for playing such a huge part in making my life so much better. You made it possible for me to have a home, to be able to pay my bills, to have food and so much more. I wish you all much happiness.
God bless all of you for you have blessed me.”
Beating the Odds
Despite being dealt a bad hand, Pat beat the odds. Her mother and father were born heroin addicts; in fact, it was her father who introduced Pat to the drug in her early teens. Pat was raised by various family members, but it was the death of her grandmother that accelerated her downward spiral into drugs, prostitution, and homelessness.
Pat applied to MSP while a resident in a drug treatment program and pregnant with twins fathered by her pimp. She gave birth to twin boys, eight weeks premature, and moved into Pliny Street when they were two months old. Pat had few job skills and virtually no self-confidence and the boys were underweight and already behind developmentally.
What happened over the next fifteen months? Pat and the boys flourished. Pat attended Life Skills and took the lessons seriously. The boys began weekly sessions with developmental specialists visiting the Transitional Living Program. Nutrition for all became a focus. The boys stabilized and MSP found daycare for them. Pat got a temp job, which became permanent, and she bought a car. A few months later, with the help of MSP’s placement staff, permanent housing was found for Pat and the boys. The boys were able to communicate with each other and had learned to use ASL in daycare until developing their verbal skills.
A miracle? No, just the result of the hard work the moms, children, and MSP staff does every day with your financial support.
Since 1992, the Transitional Living Program has helped over 700 families achieve their potential. Private donations provide a majority of this program’s financial needs.
I especially want to thank the Housing Department staff. The staff was there for me each time I called out for help. They were always patient and kind to me, even when I didn’t deserve it. I realize it must be very difficult to work with people who suffer with mental health problems. It takes a special person to work with people like me. My hat is off to the staff!
I hope the road rises up to meet you as you move forward in your career. I wanted you to know how positively you impacted my life. You helped me move away from a very ugly part of my life. My daughter and I were reunited after twelve years this past March. I was accepted in the “Shelter Plus Care Program” two weeks ago.
I have been completely clean and sober since October 2004, when I was hospitalized for severe depression and the wheels were set in motion. That was when my life started to improve and I began to see a glimmer of light at the end of my tunnel. Shortly after, I began getting assistance from Capitol Region and My Sisters’ Place. At the present, my life is so much better and I am so much healthier.
So thank you all for playing such a huge part in making my life so much better. You made it possible for me to have a home, to be able to pay my bills, to have food and so much more. I wish you all much happiness.
God bless all of you for you have blessed me.”
