Jun 18 2009

Crisis Overnight: “Where will people in need, like me, go?”

This is the first in a series of Crisis Overnight posts. Our goal is to raise $150K to save the Community Crisis Center of Elgin, Illinois from having to close. Personal stories are shared at the discretion of the individuals involved. Any stories where anonymity is requested will be honored.

You can follow or participate in our story on Twitter with the hashtag: #crisisovernight. 
________________________________________ 

How can I begin to explain how transformed my life is because of the work of Kate Van Eycke and the Crisis Center here in Elgin, IL. I am an ordained minister and an active member of the Elgin Community in the area of mental health. But when I needed help, the Crisis Center was there and has continued to be there as I continue my personal journey of recovery.

As I have been reflecting on the crisis at the Crisis Center, I thought about the healing that took place as a client of Kate Van Eyke. Kate and a couple of her colleagues were some of the first casualties of this financial crisis. After 15 or more years each their service at the Crisis Center was ended abruptly. Let me ask the folks who are proposing all these cutbacks – how many of you have ever lived in an abusive relationship? Physical, mental or emotional each takes their toll each devastating in its own way. That was essentially all I had known. I came from a good middle class home. My dad worked hard to support us. But as a family we had our secrets. My mother was emotionally abusive and it seeped into my being. I used food to insulate and self-medicate myself. I never felt that who I was or what I did was “good enough.”

Then I was married for 23 and a half years. By the time my divorce was final, my children were stashed with friends and I had the first of what would eventually be many psychiatric hospitalizations. Fifteen years later my daughter, now an adult, is still in counseling trying to recover from the emotional abusive reigned down on her by both her father and myself.

Kate helped me heal the cycle of abuse that kept repeating itself in my life. Through my recovery from my mental illness, I had come a long way in accepting who I was as a person. My work with Kate helped me continue to heal and to be gentle with myself. You took away Kate, please don’t take away the Crisis Center. Where will people in need like me go?

As I have been trying to picture my life without the safety net provided by the Crisis Center, I wanted to make sure that I had told Kate what a difference she made in my life. I sent her the following note -

I don’t know if I can summarize what an important influence you have been in my life. The holes in my life left by abusive situations are filled with self-respect because of the work that I did with you. I am no longer seeking a mate to fulfill who I am as a woman. If I were to find a man it would have to be a person that first and foremost treats me with dignity and respect because that is how I now treat myself. 

Kate, I know in my spirit that getting you as my counselor was a God moment.

Respectfully,

Rev. Patricia A. Lindquist

“Sometimes in the waves of change, we find our true direction.” - Anonymous

5 Comments on this post

Trackbacks

  1. Kristen Gianaris said:

    I have been a volunteer at the Crisis Center since I was 15 years old. I am now 18 years old. Even though I did not seek help, the help that I tried desperately to give to those seeking shelter and aid at the Crisis Center some how found a way to guide me and make me who I am. For two years I volunteered at least once a week for about two hours. I was always so excited to volunteer and I did not miss one week. I even volunteered on valentines day and made my boyfriend wait to go out until I was done. I was honored to work with Sally before she retired and even more honored to work with the children that came through the crisis center every week.
    I will never forget one family in particular that changed my life forever. Three little girls and a little boy shared with me the story of domestic troubles and harsh childhoods. Their financial need and also their need for love and friendship drove me to bringing them surprises every week they were there. One week I brought the girls string to make friendship bracelets because they told me they felt left out from their friends at school who all made them. They made me a bracelet together and told me I was their best friend. They told me that I was the only person who they felt cared about them and they told me they would miss me greatly after they left the shelter. The girls told me that I had made a difference in their lives, but really I think they made a bigger difference in mine. They gave me the understanding that I can make a difference and helped to drive my goals to change the world and make a difference in the lives of others. The past two years I have busied myself with high school activities and creating a program called IATD (I Am The Difference). IATD is an organization I founded in order to encourage leadership, service, and drug prevention amongst high school and middle school students. Although I did not volunteer at the crisis center every week, I still did whenever I had a wed. night free and I had both my middle school students and high school students make large donations to the Crisis Center after our Thanksgiving Food Drive and out of our IATD CLOSET. The crisis center is truly an amazing place that I hope to continue providing service and donations to for a long time.

    June 19th, 2009 at 12:01 am
  2. PRsarahevans said:

    What an amazing story, Kristen. Thank you so much for taking the time to share it here. Keep on talking about this–even after we reach our goal!

    June 19th, 2009 at 12:03 am
  3. Seo News said:

    Good Tips !!!! I would like to say about this only one magic word it’s “Awesome”

    July 27th, 2009 at 1:12 am
  4. resimler said:

    Its an interesting story. Thank yor for sharing it.

    February 6th, 2010 at 12:37 am
  5. AnnieK said:

    Coming from an emotionally and verbally abusive marriage I know how important getting the right support is. The CCC does more work than we know and should support it however we can. I have heard from different sources that there is going to be another folk concert to benefit the Crisis Center on February 20. It is going to be held at First Congregational Church in Elgin. It’d be great to see a lot of people of all walks of life come to support the CCC. I’ll be there!

    February 9th, 2010 at 3:06 pm