Livingston County’s Hoarding Task Force spent Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021, working with one local senior, cleaning out her house and garage, which had become unsafe for her. Two dumpsters were filled throughout the day by the Hoarding Task Force team members and several local volunteers and family members.
Prior to the clean-out day, a team of volunteers met with the senior at the house to sort through all her items and organize them into designated piles of discard, donate and keep. On clean-out day, the task force team members and volunteers spent the day moving all of the discard items to the dumpster, donated items into vehicles to deliver to various donation sites, and organized the keep items.
By the end of the day, the garage had been completely cleaned out and reorganized with some of the keep items. Much of the house had been purged of items and reorganized with more work yet to be done. One of Livingston County Catholic Charities’ mental health counselors was on hand and remained at the client’s side to help her through this stressful process.
The beneficiary of this activity had had much trauma in her past; hoarding became her coping mechanism. As the hoarding got out of control, it was no longer safe for her to remain in the house that she and her husband shared and raised their child in. She moved into an apartment, but desperately wanted to get back into her home; however, it was too overwhelming to begin on her own. Thanks to the Livingston County Hoarding Task Force, this is now a reality. At the end of the day, she shared that she just wanted to relish this moment, sit in the chair on her lawn, and visit with her neighbors she dearly missed, and look at her house.
This was possible because of many organizations and individuals who came together to make this happen: Livingston County Community Mental Health, Livingston County Catholic Charities, Habitat for Humanity, The Home Depot, Smith Douglas & Associates, Department of Health and Human Services, and several individuals, including some of the neighbors who saw what was being done, grabbed their gloves, and joined in the activity.
The Hoarding Task Force wants the community to understand that hoarding is not an illegal activity. It is worrisome and stressful for families, but the task force can only help when the client wants to engage in support and take the steps to recover. It is very important for families to understand the disease and engage in the difficult conversations with loved ones. Resources can be found here: https://www.livgov.com/hscb/Pages/LC-Hoarding-Task-Force
If you would like to learn more about the Livingston County Hoarding Task Force check out the website: https://www.livgov.com/hscb/Pages/LC-Hoarding-Task-Force.aspx or contact Amy Johnston of CMH at ajohnston@CMHLIV.ORG or Beth Newman of LCCC at beth@livingstoncc.org.
