Redemption City in Seaford transforming lives in Sussex County
SEAFORD, Del. – A local non-profit is on a mission to transform the lives of people who feel all hope is lost and have no where to go. WMDT News got the chance to sit down with officials and guests of Redemption City for an inside look at how they’re determined to make a difference in Seaford.
Feeling like all hope was lost, homeless with no purpose or will to live. That’s where John Cusack found himself after losing his wife and house with no where to turn. He found himself living out of his car, searching for shade to hide from the scorching sun, but it wasn’t long before he was noticed by volunteers with Redemption City.
“I wanted to go. I was ready to go and I wanted to go, leave this planet. I was done,” Cusack said somberly. “They asked me to come here. I didn’t want to come here. My idea of a shelter was horrible, I had a horrible image of a shelter, but it wasn’t like that, it’s more like a home.”
Redemption City’s sanctuaries are more of a home for the homeless rather than a homeless shelter. The non-profit operates two shelters, one for women and the other for men.
Nikki Gonzalez, the non-profit’s CEO and founder, has a long history of helping the homeless in Sussex County that prepared her for this effort that has already transformed the lives of many Sussex Countians.
“After running Code Purple for nine years, I really developed a sense of what was needed to help people get from point A to housing. We take it further than that and we help them with structure,” Gonzalez said, adding that they do more than just provide a place for people to sleep. “Obtaining jobs, obtaining all of their identification is crucial because without a birth certificate, a social security card, or an ID you’re not getting a house.”
Meeting people where they are, at the most difficult points of their life, that’s the first step of what they do at Redemption City. That was the case for Amanda Freed who found refuge there after she escaped an abusive relationship.
“I was in my relationship for almost 21 years,” Freed said. “Mental, physical, financial, everything had to be in his name. He was mentally abusive, physically…all the way around.”
Freed now has a home of her own and volunteers at Redemption City, a place she and Cusack say changed their lives.
“Redemption City is a wonderful organization,” Freed said confidently. “They’ve been very, extremely helpful.”
Cusack echoed that same sentiment, tearing up as he reflected on how far he’s come in such a short period of time with the help of the organization.
“You come here and may be scared of it at first,” Cusack said. “But, if you want, and if you relax and let Nikki and everybody else work their magic, you can find a place again where you can feel hope.”
The non-profit is currently working to open another shelter, as the need is that great, but it comes at a cost. Work like this takes a tremendous amount of effort that wouldn’t be possible without community contributions and funding. That’s why the organization will be holding their ‘Redemption Christmas’ event later this month.
As part of the event, the organization is bringing in accomplished American contemporary Christian artist John Waller to perform a concert with all proceeds benefiting Redemption City’s mission. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online.
“It’s all about loving people where they’re at,” Gonzalez concluded. “It’s about not enabling but giving mercy and grace with structure, and it’s helping them rise to success.”
