Marie Duffy, 62, is in her private room at Emergency Christian Ministries, a homeless shelter in Williamsburg. She came to ECM after her sister-in-law asked her to leave the home which Marie co-owned with her brother so that his daughter (Marie’s niece) could move in. Marie said, “I left because I didn’t want to make a fuss.” This past summer Marie's fiancé, a high school sweetheart, died of a heart attack.
Susan recently retired from being the office manager for the South Union Mount Zion Baptist Ministry Association, while her husband, Steven, was the director. She came out of her retirement because she felt she was meant to run the shelter. "God put it all in my lap," she says.
ECM currently houses 29 people, 11 of whom are children. The people who come there have diverse backstories, but all share a common thread: they don't have the support systems to keep them afloat financially when adverse life events happen. The ending of a relationship, an uninsured car accident, probation restrictions, severe medical issues, family rejection because of sexuality, and an abusive home life have put these residents on their paths to homelessness.
Marie Duffe, 62, has been living at the shelter for the past two years. "God brought me here," she says.
Marie is about five feet tall with chin-length strawberry blond hair and bright blue eyes. She has a calm demeanor but says that if provoked she will "say it like it is" and defend herself. Marie helps run the day-to-day of the shelter and the attached thrift store in exchange for a small stipend and a private room.
Marie has worked as a district manager for a restaurant chain, a medical aide and a mobile home salesperson. She has a seizure condition so she can't live alone. She no longer has any family, so the residents at ECM and Susan and her husband are now her home and her family. One might find Marie holding the crying baby of a resident, waking up fellow residents, and listening intently to other residents talking about their day, their relationships or their future plans.
John Marshall, 62, came to the shelter two years ago after his ex-wife kicked him out of their house. He didn't have any family nearby who could take him in. "But I have family now," he says.
Dawn brings early stirrings to the shelter as residents prepare for their days: working at jobs at the university cafeteria, the nursing home, or fast food chain restaurants. Others stay behind caring for their kids, looking for jobs, or waiting for their medical aide to assist them with chronic medical issues.
Shelter residents share refrigerators and kitchen storage. Labeling food items is essential to prevent food being taken.
Originally from California, John Marshall, 57, a resident of Emergency Christian Ministries, shares a room with Chris Ballard, 20. John has lived at ECM for two years while he continues to look for work. John is calm, friendly, and often engages with the younger kids, playing with them and holding them while he talks with their parents.
Chris Ballard, 20, holds the resident cat "Socks" while he and another resident, Shandra Dean, 25, chat with Marie about the day’s activities. Susan Jett, 67, the manager of the Emergency Christian Ministries homeless shelter, asked Shandra to drive Chris to a nearby city so he could get his ID card and Social Security number in order to apply for a job. He was hired by Arby’s that afternoon.
Shandra, married with three children, is waiting for her probation to be moved to Michigan so she can move with her family into the home she owns there. Currently her husband is working in construction in Tennessee, saving money for the move, and her children are living with her mother in Ohio. They hope to live together as a family in their own home in Michigan within a few weeks.
When not in school, kids find play in their rooms and in the common areas of the shelter. There are strict rules for the kids: they need to go to school, they can’t leave the property without a parent or guardian, they can’t cross the street alone, and they must be indoors before dark.
At around 6:45 am, Marie suspects a gas leak in the kitchen and calls the fire department. Marie manages off-hour issues for the shelter but is required to call Susan or her husband Steven to let them know what is happening and get advice or direction if necessary.
Susan Jett, 62, the manager of ECM, organizes a mountain of bagged donations stored in a rented storage unit. Approximately a third of the funds that support running the shelter come from the thrift store profits.
The son of a truck driver, John lived in six different states by the time he was ten years old, and attended 14 different school districts by the time he graduated high school. “I could read a road atlas by the time I was a little kid.”
One of the living room sofas is draped with a hand-made blanket. Both adults and kids spend time here watching television, gaming, reading, and hanging out.