2009 Annual Report (PDF) - Covenant House

“ We challenged
him to put the
past behind
him. And most
importantly,
we gave Tony
the chance
to trust
again… to
take a chance
on another
person...
to believe
in another
person.”
Adopted into foster care, Tony was abandoned
at age 13. He lived on the streets, sleeping in
parking lots, abandoned buildings, and on
park benches.
Tony first walked through the doors of
Covenant House as a 15-year-old with nothing
but the clothes on his back and a huge,
painful void in his heart: empty of any happy
memories and a past devoid of anything even
approaching a normal childhood.
Between the ages of 15 and 19, Tony checked in
and out of Covenant House multiple times.
At first, nothing or nobody could hold him
down for too long. He drifted in and out of
programs, always coming back to us. Glad to
see us. Glad to be back ‘home’ for a few days,
or a week, or a month.
Through it all, our doors always remained open.
We loved him unconditionally. Some might say
we weren’t hardnosed enough, that we should
put a limit on the number of times a kid can
come back. But God teaches us to love our kids
unconditionally. We couldn’t stand knowing
that good kids like Tony couldn’t come back.
We challenged him to put the past behind him,
and most importantly, we gave Tony the chance
to trust again, to take a chance on another
person, and to believe in another person.
We loved Tony and we didn’t stop. We survived
his testing, and through it all he began to
believe that he really is okay, really good,
and really worth it.
Through our words and actions, we were finally
able to convince Tony what we already knew –
that he was a precious gift from God.
He found his way. He beat the drugs. He
got a good job. We celebrated his numerous
promotions just like any family. Given the love
and the opportunity that all kids need and
deserve, Tony thrived.
We’re going to meet scores of kids like Tony
everyday. They come to us because they
have no place else to go. Most are in flight
from deplorable living situations, hungry, and
very scared. The question is, for all of them,
very simple: “Where am I going to sleep
tonight? Or eat tonight? Who will take care
of me tonight?”
But no matter how damaged these kids are, we
know that with love they can make it back; we
know because Tony did.
This past Thanksgiving, Tony took the love
Covenant House brought into his life and
shared it in an extraordinary way. He inspired
the staff and owners of the restaurant where he
works to create a traditional Thanksgiving meal
for homeless kids.
The restaurant was open to Covenant House’s
kids on Thanksgiving Day. They were treated
to a restaurant quality feast, and Tony led and
orchestrated the entire event.
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