Mr. B's story

The following is a story about an individual who receives services from our Mental Health Services program, which serves people with chronic mental illness and who are homeless by helping them live independently in the community.

Mr. B started receiving services from Volunteers of America in August of 2006. He sought stability; he'd lost his home and all of his possessions after Hurricane Katrina hit. The relative with whom he was living at the time could no longer able accommodate Mr. B, his spouse, and their four sons.

Compounding this was a history of mental health illness. Mr. B suffered from depression, schizoaffective disorder, and bipolar disorder.

Despite this, Mr. B expressed his desire to become stable again and to be a healthy and caring father to his family. The road to recovery was difficult, however - Mr. B was hospitalized after not taking his medications properly, which affected his relationship with his family. Mr. B's wife made several calls expressing her frustration at her husband's behavior.

Mr. B realized that the only way to achieve the stability he sought was to comply with proper medication intake. Since then, he has been receiving injections once a month. This has had a dramatic effect on his behavior - he has returned to taking courses at school daily and will soon be testing for his GED.

After obtaining his GED, Mr. B plans to further his education by enrolling in college to study business. He would like to open a convenience store with his wife.

Mr. B has moved into new housing and reports that his relationship with his family has improved.

Mark's Story

Mark (pictured on the left, at a recent ceremony honoring veterans) is a resident of our Veterans Transitional Housing program, which helps homeless veterans rebuild their lives by providing housing, job training, support services, and more. He’s a New Orleans native who joined the Air Force shortly after graduating high school. While in the Air Force, he served as a K-9 dog handler with the security police and guarded Loring Air Force Base’s nuclear facility among his other duties.

It was during this time that Mark began to develop addictions. He was hospitalized in 1978 and “100% disabled”, he says. Mark gradually recovered from his addictions to pursue college degrees and was married in 1982. Upon moving back to New Orleans in 1990, however, he relapsed, and lost his marriage and family. Mark struggled throughout the 1990’s with his addictions until becoming sober for good in 2000.

Throughout the first decade of the 21^st century, Mark was the primary caregiver for his mother, father, and grandmother. He finally found a home at our Veterans’ facility through Veterans’ Affairs in January of 2010, and has since successfully pursued the personal goals he had struggled to achieve for so long. While in our program, he has built a stronger relationship with his children and wife, found stability, and grown emotionally. He’s become involved in supporting his community and environment, and recently traveled to Louisville for leadership training through the Freret Neighborhood Center. He’s also signed up to volunteer for Volunteers of America and has sought job training. His future plans include working with homeless veterans and working for group homes.

Mark speaks highly of Volunteers of America. “This is one of the better facilities for people in my situation…it’s run in such a way that one can accomplish their goals. The people I’ve met here are like family...they take a very personal approach”.

Ronald's Story

Meet Ronald, a resident of our Canal Street Single Room Occupancy facility. Ronald is a Northshore native and son of a successful restaurateur there. He led a straightforward life in his youth as a member of the Navy Hospital Corps during the Vietnam War. While with the Navy Hospital Corps, Ronald served as a surgical medic, lab scientist, and worked in emergency search and rescue.

Upon returning from Vietnam, Ronald developed Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and began drinking as a result of his anxiety and depression. He attempted to maintain his career, working 5 years after his return from the service, but after a car wreck he moved home and began drinking on and off, “always at the wrong time”.

“The story of my life is caring for others”, says Ronald, and he’s cared for both of his parents as they entered their senior years. Following the death of his father, who he was helping his mother to care for, he began drinking chronically, leaving his job.

Ronald struggled with his alcohol addiction until April of 2005, when at the behest of his sister in law he began receiving treatment. The storm interrupted his treatment, and he evacuated to Omaha; when he was finished, he was connected with our Duvernay Residence, which offers permanent affordable housing, case management, and employment services for formerly homeless people in recovery.

Ronald just celebrated his fourth anniversary at Duvernay. He says of his experiences there – “I’m excited to be at Duvernay. It’s very welcoming and has helped me become self-sufficient”.

For his future, Ronald wants to continue to be more self-sufficient, help others, take inventory of himself, plan for life, and find a part-time retirement job for supplemental income.

We are proud to have individuals like Ronald among those we serve.

Edmund's Story

(This is a speech given by Edmund, who receives services from our Supported Living Services program. Supported Living Services helps persons with disabilities to live independently).

My name is Edmund and I am 64 years old. I was born and raised right here in New Orleans.

I lived with my mother for most of my life. When my mother passed away, I needed help. I needed transportation to buy food and I needed help to do that. I needed someone to get me to the doctor for my appointments. I needed someone to help me buy clothes. I needed a place to live. I found Volunteers of America.

That was fifteen years ago. I first lived in one of Volunteers of America’s Community Homes. It was nice there. They cooked for us, cleaned for us and provided me with transportation everywhere I needed to go.

After a while, I wanted to live in my own apartment, so the staff at Volunteers of America helped me. I found a nice apartment in Metairie and I really liked it....but when Hurricane Katrina hit, my apartment was flooded.

Volunteers of America helped me find another apartment. This apartment is really nice - it's also in Metairie.

Felicia, my personal care assistant with Volunteers of America, stays with me on Saturday and Sunday. Nikida stays with me from 7 at night until 7 in the morning.

Paul is with me from 7 in the morning until 7 at night. Paul is really more like family to me. We go to Barnes and Noble, lunch at Applebees (I like their hamburgers), and the Metairie Senior Center to play cards. I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have Volunteers of America….or Paul. I love Paul like a brother.

I like to read. I have a subscription to Sports Illustrated. The Saints, of course, are my favorite football team, but my favorite quarterback is Big Ben with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Sorry, Drew!

I am a happy man and I have a good life. Thanks to Volunteers of America, I am able to live independently in my own apartment. And I am blessed to have great people help me to do that. I’m proud of who I am and I am proud to stand here and tell you about my life and how Volunteers of America has helped me.

Thank you for coming tonight and thank you for supporting Volunteers of America. It's because of people like you that I am able to stand here and talk about how blessed I am.

May God Bless You All.

Wayne's Story

Wayne (pictured) has a troubled past. After Hurricane Katrina, he and his wife Julie were living under a bridge. Times were indeed tough, but it was Wayne’s unwavering spirit and trust in God that saw him through - “I just believed that God would show me the way, and he did”.

With the help of a collaboration of agencies, including Volunteers of America, Wayne and his wife are now living in an apartment and are as happy as they could imagine they would ever be. Wayne has since been on an advisory board for another agency and has given testimonials in Washington on their behalf. Wayne is interested in working for Volunteers of America and is exploring his options.

Congratulations, Wayne!

Duvernay Resident on the Right Path

Meet Donald Latuso (pictured), who lives at our Duvernay Residence, part of our Single Room Occupancy program. SRO offers permanent affordable housing, case management & employment services for formerly homeless people in recovery. Donald struggled with drug usage and homelessness for many years - in his words, "whenever I'm ...addicted, I'm homeless".


After receiving treatment, it was Donald's goal to live at the Duvernay Residence, a goal he has now realized for the past 10 months. He's made great positive changes in his life - now clean for 13 months, he's enjoying the company of his formerly estranged son and wife again and has big plans to earn his G.E.D. and open a business someday. We're proud of Donald's recovery...he's another example of the success stories created every day at Volunteers of America.

Conquer & Succeed....A Duvernay Resident's Success Story

"Volunteers of America put the life back in me" says Louis Brown (pictured), an Uptown New Orleans native who lives at our Duvernay Residence, part of our Single Room Occupancy program. SRO offers permanent affordable housing, case management, & employment services for formerly homeless people in recovery.

Louis struggled with homelessness and addiction after returning home in 2008. Turned away by other agencies, he began attending meetings at Duvernay, and, inspired by what he observed, decided to get clean so he could move in. The Volunteers of America family opened their hearts and doors to Louis, and he's been a resident of Duvernay for over a year.

Louis is now gainfully employed and working towards his engineer's license. He recommends anyone to Volunteers of America if they're serious about recovery. "Volunteers of America helped me to grow into being a man....I've learned independence and I live the lessons Volunteers of America teaches".

Louis is an inspiration to anyone and everyone with the desire to conquer their addictions and live a healthy, positive life.