I grew up in France. At 20 I became a born-again Christian. I had an outdoor baptism where I asked forgiveness for my sins. This was what I preached. I travelled with my Christian brothers and sisters to spread the good news, as individuals not with a church. I went to Canada and Australia, but always returning to France.

I did work in France for a while, in the Post Office, in factories, doing odd jobs. In France, I was in a bit of a mess. I had differences with my Christian brothers and sisters I was living with, so I left. In a sense I was homeless. I was close to sleeping on the streets then I got on my feet again. I was in a hostel in the South of France before I had my first experience of an Emmaus community in Bordeaux for two weeks.

After that, I found a cleaning job in Normandy and made friends with my Christian brothers and sisters and started preaching again. I also was in an Emmaus community in Switzerland and went to a Christian community. Then I applied to Emmaus Glasgow. I came here out of curiosity, and I arrived in January 2008.

Helping recycle

Emmaus Glasgow is good. I have learned new skills in woodwork at Emmaus during my time here – working towards a City & Guilds qualification as a cabinet maker – fixing furniture, making new pieces and refurbishing furniture. Upcycling furniture feels great, I learn new skills and meet lots of other people. You can resell items for a good price.

It is great Emmaus recycles and works with other people to help the environment.

I often work on the modern tills in the charity’s shops at Emmaus Glasgow. I used to do the paperwork. Everything is on the computer now. When I was on the van, I learned to carry things and, in the shops, I learned customer service skills. I learned fire safety and health and safety. It is a good thing to learn new skills.

Emmaus is a stepping stone

My favourite part of Emmaus Glasgow is the Christmas period. Although, I also liked lockdown because the staff were always around, and we had bingo and goodie bags. When I’m not at the charity shops or community, I like walking and visiting places in Glasgow and outside, such as Edinburgh, Loch Lomond and the seaside towns. I think its great people can get support at Emmaus. You learn to do things for yourself after a while.

Emmaus Glasgow has been trying to help me with my plans to move on I was born in France, in a spa town called Aix-les-Bains. I won’t go back to where I was born when I move on from Emmaus and retire. My first port of call will be Paris to contact the French authorities because they have the social services there to deal with my paperwork and address. In Paris, they have housing there as well.

To anyone struggling, I’d say find Jesus. Emmaus can be a stepping stone for a while. When people move on is up to them. Emmaus is good. You can have a laugh and there is camaraderie in the Emmaus community. A lot of businesses support Emmaus Glasgow. I want to spread the news about the good work we do.

 

If you would like to find out more about the support available at Emmaus Glasgow or refer yourself or someone else for a place, you can visit Join Our Community page here for details.