Legeci’s Place to Call Home
For Legeci, one of the hardest lessons was accepting that she deserved help.
At just 22, Legeci was living out of a duffel bag. A few months earlier, an emergency had uprooted her life, resulting in her moving from Kansas back to Oregon to live near relatives. When that fell through, however, Legeci found herself homeless without a permanent place to land.
"That's when I started couch surfing, staying with friends as much as I could,” she recalls. “Sometimes strangers ... people that I would meet at parties, and stuff like that. I kept telling myself, ‘I've got to find a job and bounce around and do it all on my own until I can figure it out.’ But, at a certain point, I was just like, ‘I can’t live like this anymore.’”
It was then that Legeci turned to her grandmother, who recommended she contact 211, a free helpline that connects callers to relief resources in their local community. After speaking with a 211 resource specialist, Legeci was referred to Boys & Girls Aid’s Supportive Housing Services to help her find a safe, stable, and affordable place to live.
When Legeci applied for housing through Boys & Girls Aid, she understood there was a long line of applicants in front of her. Still, just knowing help was on the way was a welcome relief. Holding newfound hope, Legeci felt empowered to “lock in” and work towards goals that had been placed on the backburner. Within a month, she landed a job as a behavioral technician.
Then — on her first day of work — Legeci got the call she was waiting for: Cameran, Boys & Girls Aid’s Lead Supportive Housing Liaison, let her know she had been approved for the program and that they would be working together to find Legeci an apartment of her own.
Cameran and Legeci browsed countless listings, toured nearly a dozen units, and narrowed down the options until Legeci was able to find the best choice for her needs and budget.
“I don’t even recognize my life from a year ago; I didn’t even know this kind of peace could exist.”
“Everybody that works for [Boys & Girls Aid] wants to help and genuinely cares,” Legeci shares. “Cameran has been a guiding light for me. They’ve always answered all my questions — even just ‘adulting’ questions — and they really helped me get the most ‘bang for my buck’ looking for an apartment.”
With the help of Cameran and Boys & Girls Aid, Legeci was able to stop looking for a place to stay and finally find a place to live. After that, everything quickly fell into place. She signed the lease and moved in a few days later. It was a day she’ll never forget.
“I remember looking around my empty apartment and just being so happy,” Legeci reminisces. “I just laid in the middle of the floor and started crying happy tears, knowing that I would never have to struggle like I did before again.”
Now, Legeci is celebrating her 24th birthday and her first full year in her apartment. Since moving in, she’s been testing out recipes she finds on social media and regularly hosts friends for dinner. She’s also been making progress toward longer-term goals — like saving up for a car and possibly going back to school to pursue a career in radiology.
“I don’t even recognize my life from a year ago; I didn’t even know this kind of peace could exist,” Legeci reflects. “I remember when I first entered the program, I definitely felt like a burden, and it was hard for me to ask for what I needed. It really meant a lot for someone to come and tell me, ‘It’s okay. You do deserve help and you do deserve to get back on your feet.’”
Every year, more than 200 young people facing homelessness turn to Boys & Girls Aid for help. As the only provider offering both shelter and housing services to youth in Washington County, Boys & Girls Aid plays a critical role in preventing homelessness by connecting young people to stable, affordable housing. Without programs like these, many young people in Washington County would have nowhere to go.
When you make a tax-deductible donation to Boys & Girls Aid, you help ensure young people like Legeci will receive the support and resources needed to build lifelong stability, now and for generations to come.