Tag Archives: Spotlight
Posted on Thursday, June 6, 2019
By:
Julia VanTine
Categories:
Spotlights
Several years ago, their eyes locked across the garden area where our clients relax. Kevin had arrived at the shelter first; Monica, a month later. It was love at first sight, and their feelings were definitely not encouraged. “You’re not supposed to date here,” Monica says. But they had so much in common, it was tough not to open up to each other. Both married and...
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Tagged:Spotlight, Client Success
Posted on Thursday, June 6, 2019
By:
Julia VanTine
Categories:
Spotlights
“We live here, we give here.”
—Serge Szortyka, President, Quaker Maid MeatsHow and when did Quaker Maid get involved with Opportunity House?We’ve been donors since 1995, when your organization was still The Reading Berks Emergency Shelter. We wanted to help a local nonprofit that provided emergency shelter to those in need, especially in the winter months.Twenty-four years...
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Tagged:Spotlight
Posted on Monday, November 26, 2018
By:
Julia VanTine
Categories:
Spotlights
The world had seemingly given up on Scott, a Navy veteran. But with your help, Scott built a new life from scratch: a rewarding job, his own little place, and a meaningful, productive life. After a normal life and 20 years of full-time employment in warehouse work, I’d lost my job. It was only a matter of time before I was evicted from my place. So I made the trip from Hamburg to...
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Tagged:Spotlight
Posted on Wednesday, May 2, 2018
By:
Julia VanTine
Categories:
Spotlights
This Stevens & Lee attorney joined our board last November, thanks to a colleague already active in a number of local charitable organizations. He knew Julie wanted to expand her community involvement. When Opportunity House board member Carol Miller called to ask him to recommend an attorney for a vacant board seat, he thought of Julie.
After touring the shelter, Learning Center, and...
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Tagged:Spotlight
Posted on Thursday, November 2, 2017
By:
Julia VanTine
Categories:
Spotlights
Drugs didn’t break her. Nor did a tumultuous relationship or a health
scare. Smart and articulate, Maria is a survivor. It just took her a minute to
find her stride. Maria, 43, grew up
in Reading with her mother and two sisters. When she was 26, her mother passed
away, “and that was the beginning of my drug spiral.” She started smoking marijuana
and progressed to harder...
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Tagged:Spotlight, Client Success
Posted on Tuesday, February 14, 2017
By:
Opportunity House
Categories:
Spotlights
Dear Friends,This year we have much to be thankful for and many people to thank. We had a high school group called Berks Youth in Action raise $19,000 through their Rave Dance that 500 students attended. Steve Moyer Subaru raised $21,155 for us through their Share the Love Campaign and donated 20 laptop computers for the Second Street Learning and Technology Center. Our new event, Wine Women and...
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Tagged:Spotlight
Posted on Monday, October 17, 2016
By:
Opportunity House
Categories:
Spotlights
Every year, Reading Area Community College, otherwise known as RACC, holds RACCy Olympics in order to raise money for a local organization. The idea behind RACCy Olympics is to "learn through service" and assist the college’s local community "through fundraising efforts." In accordance with every prior year, RACC has chosen to partner with Opportunity House for 2016-17. Opportunity House,...
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Tagged:Spotlight
Posted on Monday, October 17, 2016
By:
Opportunity House
Categories:
Spotlights
Bev Sanders, of Hamburg, PA has been knitting since her mother taught her when she was a child. Bev has been donating her time to Opportunity House since 2012. Sanders began volunteering at Opportunity House after she visited with a group from her hometown. After visiting with that group, Ms. Nancy, asked her if she would be interested volunteering with the children in the Second Street...
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Tagged:Second Street Learning Center, Volunteer, Spotlight, Profile
Posted on Monday, August 8, 2016
By:
Opportunity House
Categories:
Spotlights
Ten-year-old Leah Carter along with her mother Heather, contacted Opportunity House a few weeks ago about wanting to serve lunch to our residents. Each week we have generous volunteer groups come to the shelter and donate their time and energy by serving meals. However, Leah’s story is extra special. Earlier this summer, Leah and her mother had an experience with a homeless person in the...
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Tagged:Volunteer, Spotlight, Profile
Posted on Monday, August 8, 2016
By:
Opportunity House
Categories:
Spotlights
Six years ago, Jeremy Winchester, a 29-year-old from Reading, Pennsylvania, found himself homeless with no place to go. "They just kind of picked me up off my feet," Winchester remarks about his time at Opportunity House. Winchester took shelter at Opportunity House for a year while he worked to get himself back on his feet. He found himself helping out in the kitchen, picking up donations and...
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Tagged:Spotlight, Profile, Client Success
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