Permanent Supportive Housing Spotlights Challenges After Homelessness

Know the staff

Most Lenniger residents are assigned cases of cases that connect them to the resources they give to support their name.

Mr. Mercos is Marcos González, 31, athletic and pleasant, partial to braids and Gucci glasses. «When I started working here, I was wearing very professionally, and I discovered that I was actually intimidating many of my clients,» he said.

Residents with more complex needs have been assigned to Phil Ricciardi, 33, the social worker of Lenniger, a former chef, high, laconic and Eeyore, given to pronouncements such as «this is my favorite work, but only because the others were very bad.» (Like many social services providers, the Lenniger sees a good degree of turnover. Several staff members, including Mr. Ricciardi, went during the report of this story).

One March morning, Mr. Ricciardi called a client and left a message: «Are you going to go down, Diane? I think the psychiatrist is still here. Ok. Please see soon.»

Hours later, Diane Covington, 63 years old and Gauunt, with an orange hood sweatshirt under a skin with a leather, met him in the conference room. He had two objectives: to overcome an addiction to heroin and the crack of decades, and receive HIV treatment.

«It is not so much addiction, it is the disease that has me right now,» he said. «Now I’m nothing. I really want to go and gather. I will do a detoxification, 90 days.»

Mr. Ricciardi suggested the St. Bernabas near hospital, where another client had been connected to a list of doctors.

«St. Bernabas,» he reflected. «They do not provide people with the real energy of attention.» In addition, he said, he wanted to move from the neighborhood.

«If you want to move,» said Ricciardi without Rodeos, «it would be very useful if you see that you are really paying your rent.» One in five support tenants at Lenniger is late in rent, although no one has been evicted since 2017.

Mrs. Covington reluctantly agreed to go.

Mrs. Covington promised that she would see him in the morning. After she left, Mr. Ricciardi predicted that he would not be shown. «I have known her for two years, and this maybe 50 times.»

He knocked on his door early the next day. «I’m preparing,» he shouted.

Another social worker, Irma Méndez, stopped for a talk. Mrs. Covington was not her client, but Ms. Méndez had lost her own mother for AIDS decades ago. «I said: ‘You’re a survivor,» said Méndez.

But two hours later, Mrs. Covington had not come.

Lenniger personnel members said they did what they could without much leverage.

«Try to guide and navigate them to make more beneficial decisions,» González said, «but they are finally the captain of their own ship.»

A party in the basement

In the rainy afternoon before Good Friday, the Lenniger organized a Easter party in the multipurpose room without basement windows. The success of R&B of the 90s «This is How We Ho it It» exploded, while two adults with a grave with bunny suits delivered decoration supplies.

Demi Sarita’s 2 -year -old son attracted an egg with a score. Mrs. Sarita, 26 at that time, said she had moved from Florida, where she lived in her car, partly for the upper Social Security Network of New York.

Mrs. Sarita, who has bipolar disorder, spent three years in a family shelter before landing at Lenniger, where she had another child.

She said her life was joining. I was studying to be a radiology technician. «I’m just using this as a fur,» he said.

A few weeks later, he felt floating, but «a little out of that,» he had just started with Lithium. He had also taken a job in a nearby Smashburger.

Mrs. Sarita did not stay much in Smashburger. Lenniger said he was no longer working there, but was doing «ok.»