In 2023, Tevin Clark relapsed — and his addiction swallowed up everything he cared about in the process. In a matter of weeks, he swiftly lost his job and his home, and when he emerged from rehab he had nowhere to turn.
“I was homeless,” Clark told local Louisville news station WAVE, gesturing to East Broadway, a nearby road. “I was up and down these streets every day.”
One day, Clark was standing outside of a homeless shelter when a Goodwill van pulled up beside him, offering him a free meal and $50 for four hours of work.
“I really just thought it was $50 a day, for real,” Clark said. “But it changed my life, actually.”
Clark had been scooped up by Goodwill’s Another Way program, an initiative that meets unhoused people where they’re at — under highways, bypasses, on street corners, and outside of shelters — and offers them part-time work.
The work in question? Cleaning and sweeping at Louisville’s Freedom Hall, a local venue that hosts everything from baseball games and concert events to horse championships.
The hope is that over time, the program workers will keep coming back. On a given day, 30-40 unhoused people can be seen filtering through the arena, readying the venue for the next big show.
As they gain job experience, they build up resumes, which helps them secure additional work.
Theodrick Gunn, a 26-year-old father of three, has worked with the program on three occasions. Another Way not only helped him apply for a state-issued ID card — it also proved to be a safe haven from larger problems in his life.
“Every time I walk in, I’m smiling,” Gunn said. “I’m happy no matter what I’m going through. I ain’t even thinking about that. I’m coming in here.”
In addition to helping Gunn and Clark get back on their feet, outreach specialist supervisor Stefphan Gholston has helped serve over 1,312 individuals for the Another Way Program since its inception in 2019.
And his job isn’t just limited to recruiting people.
According to Goodwill Kentucky, Gholston has transported 62 people to mental health treatment facilities, placed 126 more in transitional housing, and helped 133 colleagues find long-term employment.
“Because it’s hope, and it’s not a false hope,” said Gholston. “It’s a heart that’s willing to help. True help. We’re not enabling. We’re empowering. We’re making them believe again when they’re broken.”
As for Clark, he says every recent success — finding housing, earning his GED, and crossing the stage to get his diploma — is all thanks to Another Way.
Within six months of working for Another Way, he became the assistant manager at the same Goodwill branch that first helped him out.
“He’s our success story, and he’s an awesome individual,” praised one of Clark’s Goodwill colleagues.
“At once I was hopeless, helpless,” Clark said. “But now I’m none of that. I’m back.”
Header image via Mike Mozart / Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
