Homeward Bound recently announced its plans to purchase the Days Inn hotel located at 201 Tunnel Road, with the intent to repurpose the hotel into 85 permanent supportive housing units for the community’s most at-need neighbors.
“After years of studying our community need and operating a small permanent supportive housing residence, Homeward Bound has a housing solution that will provide stability, safety, and improved quality of life for 85 of our community’s most vulnerable homeless neighbors,” Switzer said in a statement. “We are calling it ‘Home is Key.’”
April is a single mom with two teenage daughters who were homeless for six years. She grew up with a single mother who experienced domestic violence and struggled to find healthy ways to cope and keep her children safe. April also experienced relationship violence as an adult and created similar hardships for her and her children.
April had to live separately from her daughters because she did not have a permanent home.
April lived in and out of shelters in Asheville while working at a local motor lodge. Shelters felt like a prison to April, waiting for lockers and showers and strict bedtimes so, often, she lived on the streets. Homelessness required her to walk all night and stay awake to withstand the coldness of winter.
April’s Daughter Comes to Town
April’s oldest daughter texted her in June of 2018 to say she wanted to live with her. April had been staying at a local shelter, but they wouldn’t take in the 17-year-old. Rather than be separated again, April and her daughter began sleeping in their Jeep in church parking lots. They acquired many trespassing tickets throughout the winter time while April’s daughter was recovering from pneumonia. The Jeep was finally towed, along with all of their personal belongings. Throughout this time, April and her daughter continued to go to AHOPE for showers, charging their cell phones, snacks, and other needed services.
On January 29, Homeward Bound Case Manager Amanda moved April and her family into their very own home. With a letter from Homeward Bound saying they were housed, the courts dropped the trespassing charges they received while living in their car.
April wants people to know that ‘the struggle is real’ and that there aren’t enough shelters for single mothers or fathers with children. She and her daughters had to wait over four months for their apartment because three bedroom units are few and far between.
April (left) and her case manager Amanda (center). Her daughter is featured on the right.
She also explains that working full time or even part-time, and living on the streets, is virtually impossible when you are trying to keep your family together and safe. Now that they have moved into their own home, they are making plans for the girls to continue their education and for April to get back to work.
Candice Dickinson’s heart broke while seeing how humans can treat people just because they do not have a home. As a young artist living in NYC, she became inspired by the people experiencing homeless surrounding her. They huddled next to each other trying to sleep and stay warm. It felt like an overwhelming problem that was just not right. Giving a dollar here and there wouldn’t even make a dent in these people’s lives. She felt the panic of being one paycheck away from not affording rent or bills. She asked herself what would happen if she didn’t have family to fall back on when times got hard.
Finding Home
This compassion, as well as Dickinson’s passion for the arts, motivated Finding Home. The performance is a collection of tales that tell true stories of our neighbors who have lived for years without a home.
After taking a tour of AHOPE, Homeward Bound’s homeless day center, Dickinson partnered with the agency and create this play as a fundraiser. Her goal is to only raise money for Homeward Bound so it can continue its mission of finding permanent homes for the homeless. But also to tell the story and share ideas that can change people’s hearts and minds.
Logistics
The performances take place January 11-14 at 7:00pm at the Phil Mechanic Studios in the River Arts District. Finding Home is an intimate piece of theater with a cast of eight singers and actors and a band. The cast are all Asheville locals who have worked professionally in the theater community both in Asheville and throughout the country.
Available at the performances are exclusive small plates from the new menu of the upcoming restaurant venture from Jacob Sessoms of Table along with clean and sour brews from Wicked Weed.
