Four months ago, Sabrina Foley and her 3-year-old son Brycen were homeless, living on the street.
Abandoned by Brycen’s father, the 23-year-old single mom had just $50 in her pocket and her meager belongings piled in the back of her car. Desperate, she turned to the Salvation Army.
Officials there referred her to Family Promise, a network of more than two dozen churches that mentors homeless families to help them become self-sufficient.
Since January, Foley and her son have been the guests of 12 local congregations who take turns providing living quarters for struggling families searching for work and trying to stabilize their finances.
Over the weekend, Foley and her son became the first graduates to move into a subsidized rental in Family Promise’s new transitional living program.
Brycen’s eyes were as big as saucers when he saw his room filled with toys.
“He’s really excited,” his mother said. “It took him a while to understand that this is going to be our house for now. Just for us.”
With a $250 monthly rent, the newly renovated house in west Bradenton is a home Foley can afford while she pursues her nursing degree and saves for a home of her own.
Family Promise’s transitional housing program is a testament to the faith that keeps the program going, says Bruce Webster, executive director.
“Our network of churches and volunteers are the lifeblood of this organization,” Webster said. “It just seems that before you even know you need something, it just appears at the right moment.”
Foley’s new home is one of four owned by Trinity United Methodist Church in Bradenton, which offered to rent them to Family Promise. The network provides them for a minimal rent to families working toward self-sufficiency, Webster said.
But the houses first needed extensive renovation.
Enter Bill Pretyka, the volunteer in charge of the transitional housing program.
“We had to gut everything,” Pretyka said. “The plumbing didn’t work. The sewer didn’t work. There were no lights, no furniture.”
Then the miracles began to happen. Pretyka gave a short talk to fellow members of Harvest United Methodist Church.
“Within the hour, I had 60 volunteers. Within a week, I had 130 names. Within a couple of weeks, I had a couple of thousand dollars and more than 600 volunteers,” he said, marveling.
The miracles continued.
“When the manager at the Sherwin Williams paint store on State Road 70 heard about the project, he donated 100 gallons of flat white paint,” Pretyka said. “Then a furniture store that deals in estate furniture donated a whole house of furniture.”
Even strangers helped.
Pretyka was on an airplane doing some paperwork when a fellow passenger asked him about the project. The stranger pulled out her checkbook and wrote him a check for $300.
Volunteering for Family Promise has been an eye-opener for Pretyka.
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