SVdP and our thrift store team gave Cindy Teffer a new beginning
One ordinary day, Cindy Teffer was doing her normal chores at home, walking from one room to another. Suddenly, she heard a shocking “crunch, crunch” in one of her legs causing her to collapse to the floor. Her leg twisted behind her and broke. Cindy would soon learn she had osteoporosis, a diagnosis she never saw coming. The unexpected diagnosis began a difficult journey that led her to St. Vincent de Paul for housing help and other support she urgently needed. It's also where a creative effort by SVdP’s Hope Chest Thrift Store team helped finance her fresh start.
After Cindy broke her leg, her life was consumed by surgeries, treatments, and rehabilitation. This made it nearly impossible for her to continue working in the career she loved as a Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA). With no stable income or support systems, Cindy lost her home.
Doctors referred Cindy to Circle The City to recover, and from there, she found a new path at SVdP's Ozanam Manor transitional shelter. It was there that Cindy met her social worker, Stephanie Wise, who became an important guide in her journey to permanent housing.
"Ozanam Manor has programs where people like me can blossom," Cindy shared. "It's up to the people receiving the resources to succeed, but the environment is there for that to happen."
After nearly two years of perseverance and wait, Cindy qualified for disability benefits and began receiving retirement income. With the help of her social worker, she found an affordable apartment that fit her needs. SVdP furnished Cindy's new home through the SVdP Home Furnishings Program, ensuring she could start the next chapter of her life with the essential furniture items a home needs. With those larger pieces taken care of, the Home Furnishings Program sets newly rehoused residents up to afford their bills and maybe smaller household items that the program cannot always provide.
But thanks to a unique fundraising effort during SVdP’s National Assembly in Phoenix, Cindy received additional support. SVdP's thrift store team set up a two-day, pop-up shop inside the local hotel where all the assembly goers were staying. With over 800 Vincentians from across the country in attendance, the store raised more than $4,000 and sold every item on display. Those same funds directly helped Cindy’s additional move-in costs into her new apartment.
Today, Cindy is settled in her new place where she enjoys cooking some of her favorite recipes with her furry companion, Miley, always alongside her. She plans on finding a part-time job from home and volunteering at SVdP.
Stories like Cindy's are a powerful reminder of why SVdP’s programs that feed, clothe, house and heal are vital for those in need. SVdP’s thrift stores, along with the new Virtual Hope Chest e-thrift store, play a direct role in funding part of those life-changing services. With every purchase from the Virtual Hope Chest, an individual like Cindy can look forward to the rehousing support needed to begin a brighter future.
