On 7th February I was joined by Gary, who decided to share his story about how he became a companion here at Emmaus Lambeth.
“It all started for me back in October 2015 when I moved back to Croydon from Cumbria after I split up with my partner.
I was using my sisters address as a care-of address but after about 3 weeks she received a letter from the government which claimed I was actually living with her full time, which was not true. They were even prepared to increase her rent because of this.
I knew full well that this wasn’t fair on my sister so I moved out and slept on the streets, but still used my sisters house for something to eat and a shower at night
I then managed to get myself into a good hostel in Crawley, where I ended up staying for about 3 months and I was even offered a job with them as a mentor!
Unfortunately I had to turn it down as at the time I was still finding my feet and dealing with other issues
I then moved out of the open house and became a companion at Emmaus Lambeth”
When Gary was asked how Emmaus Lambeth had changed his life for him, Gary replied:
“Oh immensely, just by knowing that I can stay here as long as I want gave me such a real lift, especially as I have a roof over my head and can work everyday, something I really missed when I was living on the streets”
Thanks very much to Gary!