From Our House

To Yours September 2011

www.ourhouseshelter.org 302 E Roosevelt Rd; Little Rock, AR

20 Meet our newest board members

Family Housing program success story: Melissa‘s family 22

August donors 27

The Habibis: top donors 19

August thanks: Clinton School, Central High School,

Paul Mitchell School, and school uniform donors 24

All photos by Amanda Woods, an Our House VISTA, except:

pg 14 by Georgia Mjartan; pg 19 from the Habibi family; pg 24 top by

Callie Denne, Our House VISTA; pg 24 bottom by Clinton School

12 On the 5th anniversary

of Our House‘s playground,

Executive Director Georgia

Mjartan details in an

extended article the history

of the playground and the

impact it has had on over

1,000 Our House kids.

As a child who grew up playing

in parks, loving to swing,

excited by the thrill of

climbing high, I knew the

power a playground could

have. But that didn‘t change

our reality. We were a homeless

shelter with barely enough

money to feed our residents.

A new playground seemed

out of the question.

“

”

Sharon Yates eagerly

shares her story and her

gratitude in this extended

article about a woman

who had it all, lost it all, and

got back what really mattered.

4 You don’t come

to Our House

to lie down.

You get to work.”

“

Sharon has been a resident of Our House for two years. She

is in the process of moving out of the Family House and into

her own permanent home. Remarkably, Sharon has also been

an Our House donor for the last eight months. She has been

donating $20 each month, a portion of the earnings from an

entrepreneurial venture she began while living here. Her

story is one that inspires courage and generosity in the hearts

of all those who are willing to hear it.

By Ganelle Grimm, Development Coordinator

Born in Conway, Arkansas, Sharon moved to Missouri when

she was 20 years old for medical school at William Woods

College. She met her husband, Tim, while he was in law

school. They married and moved to Kansas City. She gave

birth to two children in two years and then decided not to

finish medical school, opting to stay home with her children.

I don‘t regret one minute of the time I spent taking care of

my kids. It was either marriage or medicine.‖ Sharon and her

family had several happy years in a beautiful home. They

lived an affluent life full of homemaking and socializing until

the birth of her last child, when Sharon began to suffer from

bipolar depression. ―I developed real serious depression with

alcoholism along with it.‖ Untreated, those struggles were a

heavy weight for Sharon and her family. Sharon and Tim

divorced in 1995.

For years, Sharon was unable to resolve getting divorced, so

she continued to drink. ―I was up and down. I had a couple

good jobs here and there, but I was spiraling out of control,

in and out of treatments a few times.‖ She survived those last

few years in Missouri on the money left in her retirement

account. Down to her last $1,000, Sharon decided to spend it,

hoping she would be dead before she‘d spent it all.

continued on page 6

―

Home, Sweets, & Home, continued

The money was gone. I couldn‘t pay my rent, and I was still alive. So I

moved back home to Conway.‖ Sharon intended to move in with her

sister, but found that situation unlivable. After three months of living in

Conway, Sharon had nowhere to go. She had one brother in Little Rock,

but because he cares for his disabled child, Sharon did not want to burden

him. ―I left my sister‘s with $40 and ¼ tank of gas. I had the clothes on

my back and one pair of shorts in my bag.‖

―

Sharon‘s kids, now grown and successful in their own careers,

stayed in contact with her with phone calls and letters while she

lived at Our House.

Sharon admits that the move to Our House was a difficult

transition for her. ―It was major for me to live the life of rules

at Our House: get my chore done, find a job. It was like being

a baby and starting completely over. I had no idea whether

I would stay. I just knew that there were obviously people

here that were going to help me, who cared about me, that

it was safe, and it was clean. And that was as good as my

life was going to be for a while.‖

Sharon did stay. continued on page 7

You don’t come to Our House

to lie down. You get to work.

Then Sharon got a phone call from her worried children; it

had been months since they‘d heard from her. ―They got me

out of my stupor, at least enough that I got the strength to

open up the phone book and look up shelters.‖ Sharon knew

nothing of Our House before she made that phone call one

Sunday afternoon. By Monday morning, Sharon was pulling

into the guard shack. ―I just said, ‗I hope you have a place for

me.‘ I was so tired I felt like I could come in and lie down

for weeks. Of course I didn‘t. You don‘t come to Our House to

lie down. As soon as you‘re settled in a bed, you get to work.‖

I didn’t mean to kill myself,

but I figured I would die.

The next phase in Sharon‘s life is ―so sordid that it‘s hard to

admit.‖ These were the darkest and most difficult times in

her life. She couldn‘t imagine that, with her background and

education, she would end up almost dying in a motel room in

Morgan, Arkansas. ―I didn‘t mean to kill myself, but I figured

I would die. I went to that motel with a whole lot of vodka

and decided I would drink until I couldn‘t drink anymore.‖

Sharon was completely void of self-esteem, and she didn‘t see

any reason to go on living. ―I figured I would just pass out and

take my medicine and that, hopefully, would be the end of it.‖

Sharon was excited to give a couple of Our House staff a tour of

her new house. In a couple of weeks she will move into the little

cottage, her first new home in years.

Home, Sweets, & Home, continued

“The Shugie’s

recipe was one

of my beloved

grandmother’s.

Shugie was her

affectionate name

for her husband.

As I served them

through the years,

I was consistently

told that I should

market them.”

Everyone loved me through this.

Shugie’s

Within 6 months of living here, Sharon was already looking

for ways to give back. The idea turned into reality when she

started selling her Shugie‘s at Hestand‘s in the Heights. Sharon

used her ex-husband‘s grandmother‘s recipe to make the sugar-

coated cookies that were a huge hit around the holidays. ―It‘s

something I made all my life for my family and for parties and

gave as gifts. Hestand‘s was shocked at how fast they sold.‖

Sharon gives a portion of those earnings to Our House each

month. Sharon was inspired by the support she saw from the

Little Rock community. She decided to serve others who might

arrive at Our House, weary, tired, and in need of support. ―I

take nothing for granted.‖ continued on page 10

She applied for jobs for which she was vastly over-educated.

I was a breakfast hostess at an extended-stay hotel. I had no

waitressing or hostessing experience other than hosting parties

and family gatherings. It was like a Lucy Show with all the

waffle batter spilling. If the eggs weren‘t perfect they had to be

thrown out. I was horrible at it! I remember dropping the mop

water one day. I came back [to Our House] in tears and went

to my case manager thinking, ‗I was right, I am worthless.‘‖

Sharon‘s case manager was Justin Sanders, now the Family

Housing Manager at Our House. Justin told Sharon about a

job trainee position open in Little Learners. Job trainees like

Sharon learn useful job skills while they work and live here at

Our House. Sharon worked there for 20 months. Within one

year she‘d saved over $2,000, enough to get a new motor for

her vehicle. ―I had to start saving all over again once I got that

motor, but it was worth it. And everyone here just loved me

through this whole experience.‖

―

9

“I’m very

careful with

what I spend

now. I never

appreciated

anything as

much as the

$12 curtains

I have now.”

“I’m very

careful with

what I spend

now. I never

appreciated

anything as

much as the

$12 curtains

I have now.”

Residents may live at Our House for two years or until they

save $10,000. Aware that her time was almost up, Sharon

decided to look for a job outside of Our House. The job skills

she learned in Little Learners Child Development Center have

served her well. She is now a toddler teacher at Helping Hands.

―I have health insurance, not too much money, but I can make

it. I‘m a work in progress.‖ She even found her own home—a

little cottage next to an old farmhouse. ―It‘s just a living room,

kitchen, laundry area, and back bedroom, but it‘s everything!

I have a deck and front porch! I have privacy and quiet. I have

my life back.”

What was Sharon‘s first stop when she found out about the

cottage? She went to Savers. “No more of this going to the store

and buying things new. I‘m very careful with what I spend now.

I went ahead and spent $12 on curtains. They‘re my colors!

They‘re my curtains! If my family needed a sofa before, we just

ordered a brand new sofa. But I never appreciated anything as

much as the $12 curtains I have now.‖

In just a couple of weeks, Sharon will move into her new home

with a good job and savings in the bank. But she‘ll never forget

what Our House and its supporters have done for her. ―I will

always, forever, think about giving back to Our House. I want to

give back what I can, even if its $10 or $20 a month. It is nothing

compared to what my life is worth. I can‘t put a price on my

life, and I have it back thanks to Our House. I used to give

because I needed a tax deduction. Now I give treasure because

that‘s where my heart is.‖

Sharon asked us to mention in this article a special thanks to “my great

friend Kelly Dunaway Holt who has loved me through it all for 47 years.”

I can make it.

Home, Sweets, & Home, continued

11

Georgia Mjartan, Executive Director

This summer marked the 5th anniversary of when

250 people came out on a hot summer day to

build a playground for the children of Our House.

In light of this, I have given some thought to the

impact of the playground on our children – over

1,000 swinging, jumping, playing boys and girls

over these past five years.

where do you think we should start? What

is the most important need we have?‖

A teacher in our child care, normally

timid, spoke out without hesitation, ―We

need a new playground.‖ Our small,

rusty playground was so old that pieces

of it had come apart, leaving exposed,

sharp metal edges. The old playground

sat right off of the main drive to enter

and exit our campus. It had been fenced

in with chain links, but because there

wasn‘t enough room, the space was so

tight that a child swinging couldn‘t jump

off while in mid-air or else he would

careen into the fence. It was unsightly,

unsafe, and worst of all, it was a play-

ground that told our children that they

were not important.

Every week, I would go to my staff

meeting and ask my team if they had

any suggestions or questions. Every

week, Ms. Janet, the child care teacher,

asked me, ―Georgia, when are you going

to get us a new playground?‖

continued on page 14

When I first came to Our House 6 years

ago, there was so much to be done it

was hard to know where to start. Our

buildings were falling apart. One of the

houses where homeless families live

during their stay with us was in such

bad shape that the ceiling literally caved

in one day. The grounds of our campus

looked like a sea of broken asphalt. In

our community, like communities across

America, the face of homelessness was

changing. We were seeing a dramatic

increase in homeless families with

children. To respond to this growing

need, we had just finished building a

shelter that would house 80 people,

compared to the 40 beds we had offered

previously. Coupled with the Family

Housing also on our 4-acre campus,

Our House now had housing for 110

people on any given night. A third of

our residents were children.

With so much do ahead of us, and as a

new Executive Director, I went to my

staff and posed the question to them,

With so many problems, so many needs,

―

from the Director

t was a tough question for me. As a

child who grew up playing in parks,

loving to swing, excited by the thrill

of climbing high, I knew the power a

playground could have. But that didn‘t

change our reality. We were a homeless

shelter with barely enough money to

feed our residents. There were many

times in those early days when we didn‘t

know how we would make payroll. We

literally did not have enough money in

the bank to pay our energy bills, and I

was making calls to donors asking for

money just for the basics. A new play-

ground seemed out of the question.

I wrote a letter of appeal to KaBoom!,

an organization that helps groups like

Our House find funding and make plans

to build playgrounds. My letter sounded

a lot like the story outlined here. I

explained our situation. I told them about

the 300 homeless children who come to

Our House every year–children who

have never had a backyard, children

who have lived in cars and in dark

apartments without heat or air. I wrote

about our community and the neighbor-

hood just behind our property, where

little children ride their bikes up and

down the street while teenagers deal

drugs right in front of them, with no

adults in sight. I told them how we had

no money, but we were not going to

give our kids a hand-me-down play-

ground because everything they had

was hand-me-down. Because our

kids–these sweet, homeless children–

get made fun of at school because of

all they don‘t have and, worst of all,

because the school bus drops them off

in front of a homeless shelter, exposing

their secret to all of their classmates.

For all those reasons, we needed a new

playground. We needed KaBoom!‘s

help, and we needed a sponsor who

would foot the bill to purchase the

equipment for us. continued on page 16

I The Thrill of Climbing High, continued

As a child who

grew up playing

in parks, loving

to swing, excited

by the thrill of

climbing high, I

knew the power

a playground

could have.

But that didn’t

change our

reality. We were

a homeless

shelter with

barely enough

money to feed our

residents. A

new playground

seemed out of

the question. 15

many people, all so different from each

other, unified in their work to build a

playground for our children was truly

inspirational. There were civic groups,

church groups, social workers, bankers,

business people, students, elected offi-

cials, and even a group from a home for

developmentally disabled adults. I have

a photograph from our build which I

cherish because it captures the heart of

what a KaBoom! Build is all about. It is

a photograph of one of our board mem-

bers, an Arkansas Supreme Court Justice,

working alongside one of our residents, a

50-year-old homeless man who had never

learned to read: two people, so different

from each other, equal in their service,

equally committed to building something

wonderful for our homeless children.

ithin months of writing that

letter to KaBoom!, a team

of playground designers was

in the Shelter, asking our homeless

children what their dream playground

would look like. The kids got to pick

the colors, the components—slides,

swings, monkey bars. They got to

dream up something magnificent, and

weeks later, they got to see it built for

them, a brand new playground on the

campus of a homeless shelter, funded

by Pepsi and orchestrated by KaBoom!

On build day, 250 people came to help

us build our playground. It was July and

the hottest day of the year, with the tem-

perature topping 100°, but that didn‘t

keep the community away. Seeing so

W The Thrill of Climbing High, continued

I have seen a

bright 8-year-old

who has been

through so

much… climb to

the highest point

and smile with

pride at her

accomplishment.

This summer marks the five-year

anniversary of that day when we built a

KaBoom! playground for the children

of Our House. In five years, over 1,000

children have enjoyed the playground,

and the community has continued to

give. Just a few months ago, a group of

financial planners and investment bro-

kers from Morgan Stanley Smith Barney

stepped out of their offices and onto

the playground to spruce it up, fix what

was worn, and add new things for our

children to enjoy.

continued on page 18

17

Could your school, organization, or community use a new playground?

KaBOOM!, in partnership with Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, is offering

$15,000 Let’s Play Playground Constructions Grants to qualifying

organizations using the KaBOOM! community-build model.

Applications are due September 30th. Click here for more information.

Put this on ―click here‖

http://kaboom.org/build_playground/get_funding/grants

ut it is not the numbers of volunteers who

have helped or children who have played

that reveal the impact of this playground.

It is the stories. The playground has given our

children something to be proud of. What a gift for

these children to be able to invite their friends from

school to play on their playground. They don‘t

have a home to invite them to. They only have a

single bed in a shelter dorm, but now they have

a playground to call their own.

In these five years, the playground has been a

gathering point, a place for families that were

broken to reconnect. I have seen a homeless father,

a former drug addict, lovingly lift his daughter

onto the swing, a young mom catch her little girl

as she comes down the slide, and a bright 8-year-old

who has been through so much—the loss of her

mom, separation from her sister—climb to the

highest point and smile with pride at her

accomplishment. The shelter meets our families‘

basic needs – it gives them housing. The playground

meets our children‘s heart needs – it gives them

a home.

B The Thrill of Climbing High, continued

playground grant opportunity

donor receives as much as he gives

By Jessica Suitor, In-Kind Donations VISTA

Hamid Habibi had heard about Our House from friends, but it

was a discussion with Executive Director Georgia Mjartan at a

fundraising event that motivated him to become an Our House

donor. He and his wife, Isabel, were excited to learn about the

Our House education and job training programs and wanted to

find ways to get involved. Now every month Habibi‘s car pulls

up to the shelter packed full of necessities like paper towels,

toilet paper, cleaning supplies, and trash bags. The Habibis

make a special trip to a local bulk store just to purchase these

items for the residents of the shelter. Habibi says he loves

―helping people to get back on their feet and become self-

sustained.‖ Because of their kindness, his family was named

one of the Top 10 In-Kind Donors for the 2010-2011 fiscal year.

Habibi enjoys working with Our House so much he hopes to

find even more ways to serve.

19

George Knollmeyer is the Manager

of Administrative Services for Ben

E. Keith Foods. He is a member of

the Board of Directors for the

Arkansas Oil Marketers Association.

George served as the Chair of the

Food Committee for Dinner on the

Grounds 2011 and has been instru-

mental in securing thousands of

dollars in goods and materials for

Our House.

Mary Shue is a caregiver, manicurist,

and pedicurist for Caracalla Spa.

She is a member of St. Andrew‘s

Growing In Grace. Mary volunteered

in Little Learners Child Development

Center for months after leaving Our

House as a resident and job trainee.

Mary is excited to spend time with

and serve as a mentor for the current

residents of Our House.

new board members

Mary Shue George Knollmeyer

Chris Scaffhauser is the Facility and

Engineering Manager for United

Parcel Service. He is responsible for

all project engineering, safety regu-

lations, and facility maintenance on

all UPS facilities in Arkansas and

Southwest Missouri. He is a member

of Holy Souls Catholic Church and

coaches youth basketball at Calvary

Baptist Church. Chris is active in

helping residents at Our House find

work and think about the possibilities

they could achieve.

Chris Scaffhauser

Rep. Darrin Williams is a Managing

Partner for Carney Williams Bates

Bozeman & Pulliam, PLLC. He is

also a member of the Arkansas House

of Representatives, District 36, and

the Legislative Hunger Alliance. He

is a deacon and Sunday school

teacher at Central Church of Christ,

and he is a member of the CARTI

Board of Directors. As a member of

the Legislative Hunger Alliance,

Rep. Williams designated $5,000 in

grant funds to Our House.

Rep. Darrin Williams

By Ben Goodwin, Grants Manager

Melissa came to Our House eight months ago with her kids, Kaleb and

Zadie, and a mission to turn their lives around. Considering everything

Melissa had been through before coming to Our House—including

homelessness, extreme poverty, drugs, and prison—the progress she and

her family have made since arriving is remarkable. She has held down

a full-time job, saved a considerable amount of money, paid off fines

and past-due bills, worked toward her GED, and put herself and her

family in a great position to succeed on their own. Her kids have thrived

as well. Zadie has blossomed from a shy and withdrawn first-grader to

a confident, outgoing second-grader. She brought her reading skills up

to grade-level and discovered a love of books. Kaleb has worked through

some emotional issues himself. He is excelling in school and is being

tested for admission into his school‘s gifted and talented program.

What is even more notable is how Melissa has not just focused on her

own family but has gone out of her way to help other residents as well.

For instance, she not only helped her own children sign up for football

and cheerleading through the community center but worked with other

parents to sign up all the children in the Family House (where she and

her kids live) for these activities. She helped prepare a new garden bed

in the Our House garden, and she shared the abundance of tomatoes

and cucumbers with all of the Family House residents. Altogether, she

has helped build a strong, tight-knit community among the residents of

the Family House. They cook meals together, work through problems

together, and share their lives in ways that make each of them stronger.

This is the spirit of Our House: people helping each other overcome

hardship and building a community in the process. Even Zadie has

caught the spirit; she recently gave her bicycle to a new girl in the after-

school program who was going through a difficult time.

family begins to thrive at Our House

Much of Melissa‘s success is due to her participation in Our House‘s Family

Housing Program. The Family House is a transitional housing facility that

allows residents to stay in private family rooms and share a common living

room and kitchen. Residents of the Family House have more responsibility

than shelter residents. They are required to purchase their own food, pay a

low rent, keep up with chores, work, save 75% of their earnings, and par-

ticipate in educational and training activities. The program allows residents

to obtain the skills necessary become successful tenants or homeowners.

The Our House Family House is also the only shelter in Arkansas that allows

single fathers to stay with their children.

23

thanks!

On August 18th, as part of an

orientation service project, the

Clinton School Class of 2013

volunteered at Our House,

sorting donations, landscaping,

and working with the kids in

Little Learners. The students

did an excellent job.

Just a week before school began,

Our House was in desperate

need of school supplies and

uniforms. Christ the King

Catholic Church, the Cherry

family from Summit Church,

board member Amanda Hughes,

Temple B‘nai Israel, Fellowship

Bible Church, Altrusa, and

many individuals ensured that

our kids had the tools they need

to succeed in school.

School Uniforms

The Clinton School

24

The Paul Mitchell School

provided free haircuts for

our residents. The resi-

dents loved their new

hairdos. Something as

simple as a haircut can

make a huge impact on

the confidence of a home-

less man, woman or child.

Central High School Class of 2001

The Paul Mitchell

School

The Central High School Class of 2001 selected Our House as their

community service project for their ten-year reunion this August.

With the help of Little Rock Urban Farming, the group was able to

plant sturdy bushes around the Family house and re-mulch the entire

campus. They also served lunch to all residents in both the Family

House and the Shelter.

Have an Our House birthday party

On your birthday, ask your friends and family to bring a needed

item for Our House instead of bringing you a birthday present.

Pick up an extra one

When you are at the grocery store, pick up an extra bag of rice,

pasta, or canned food item for our pantry.

Have a collection at work

Have an empty box in the break room so your colleagues can fill

the box with donations.

Clean out your closets

We have 110-120 people at Our House at any given time. Often

many of them come here with nothing. Donating your gently-used

clothing will help provide for our residents.

top ways to donate

26

Individuals

Mary Aitken & Richard Kurten

Anonymous donor

Amy & Hamlin Au

Betsy Barnes

Debi Barnes

Richard Bruno

Jennifer & J.M. Cherry

Cynthia Crone

Tanya D. Giles

Nina Hillis

Sarah & Theodore Hood

Glenda Longmore & Daniel

Watson

Susan & Kenneth Martin

Susan Miller

Rebecca & Dale Pekar

Sally Smith

Bridget & Andrew Upchurch

Amelia & Rev. Donn Walters

Jodi Woods

Hardy Winburn

Congregations

Cathedral of St. Andrew

Christ the King Catholic Church

Church of the Immaculate

Conception

Our Lady of Holy Souls Catholic

Church

St. Anne Catholic Church

St. James United Methodist Church

Summit Church

Corporations

Anonymous

Starbucks Coffee Company

Grants and Foundations

City of Little Rock

Heart of Arkansas United Way

HUD

State of Arkansas

August Donors

27

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