[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]When his next-door neighbor was murdered in his own home during a drug deal gone wrong, ADEC client Kenny Minor decided it was time to move.
Kenny, who moved with his mother and brother to Elkhart from Kentucky, lived on Garfield Avenue for about 20 years, and he watched on in sorrow as his neighborhood deteriorated.
“There was shootin’ and fightin’ any time you were out. You weren’t safe to sit outside, and you weren’t safe to sit out back either,” Kenny said. “I had a privacy fence around [back], but you just weren’t safe.”
The ADEC direct support professional (DSP) whom worked with Kenny during that time said that Kenny had experienced shootings in the neighborhood before, but he had always lived with it.
“Kenny always said he didn’t mind the violence around him because it wasn’t ‘close’ enough to him and his home,” said his staff member. “Bless his heart; he was more worried about the neighbors and his dogs than he was about himself. But I will never forget when I showed up to his home [after his neighbor was killed] and the first thing he said to me was: ‘we gotta get out of here.’ “
Kenny loved to lounge on his front porch and spend time walking his beagles — Susie and Jasmine — around the neighborhood. But with the increase in violence, he no longer felt safe being outside and he decided a change was in order.
With the help of his DSP and others at ADEC, Kenny and his brother found an apartment in a safer part of town.
“ADEC helped me out a lot. They were there for me,” Kenny said. “I’d been there [on Garfield Avenue] for 20 years, and it was getting worse every day. It was time to move on to a safe place.”
These days, with the help of ADEC, Kenny can resume the outdoor activities he loves so much: lounging on his porch and walking Susie and Jasmine around the neighborhood.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column css=”.vc_custom_1534093840918{background-color: #008bb3 !important;}”][vc_custom_heading text=”Who Knew?” font_container=”tag:h2|text_align:center|color:%23ffffff” google_fonts=”font_family:Shadows%20Into%20Light%3Aregular|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal”][vc_column_text]Who knew the violent death of a neighbor would lead Kenny to have the courage to live A life of his own?
Because of you, individuals like Kenny are able to have the support to take steps that are sometimes scary but needed in order to live a full life. Thank you for helping Kenny feel safe and enjoy sitting on his porch again.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”4265″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”https://ahf.723.myftpupload.com/donate”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]
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