Meet Joseph.
Two years ago he was displaced by Hurricane Florence in South Carolina. He lost his home due to the flooding, so FEMA stepped in to offer some assistance. His only income at the time was his SSI check so finding a place that wasn’t destroyed and in his price range was difficult. Over the next several months the concept of “home” was fluid; From camping on the beach or near the river to staying in a storage shed, hotel rooms, and a couple shelters, Joseph made due with what he had, working odd jobs here and there to make it work. He was staying in a hotel by the beach when COVID-19 hit. The hotel shut down which left him once again on the streets. He decided to come North to South Dakota because his only son lives in Sturgis. Soon after the plane landed in Sioux Falls, Joseph fell ill. It took a few trips to the doctor before they finally diagnosed him with COVID-19. He spent 5 days in the hospital and another 12 days recovering in quarantine before he found himself at the Bishop Dudley House at the beginning of April.
Since coming here, he has been diligent about getting things in order so that he can clean the slate and move forward. He has struggled with PTSD for a long time but he says things are getting better and his symptoms are going away. He wants to get off SSI and get a good job but first he has to get his license back. He is taking a class and paying the fines to clean up his driving record so that he can start fresh. Once he gets that license he can get a job and then work towards getting a car and a place to live. While he has encountered many bumps on the road of his journey and will tell you that sometimes he feels like Job from the Bible, he doesn’t feel like he is being punished but that this is just a stepping stone to something better. He says that this place is different from others like it, people in South Dakota are nice and he is grateful for everything he has been given since he arrived here. “[The Bishop Dudley House] has helped me and I wouldn’t have gotten this far without you guys”. He wants people to know that he is “on a journey of self-recovery, I quit drinking about 9 years ago and I’m going to quit cigarettes and Red Bull next and I will get off SSI and get a job. I’m grateful for the staff here in helping me with that”. He looks forward to taking trips out to Sturgis to visit his son and his granddaughters in the very near future.