- Last Updated on Friday, 02 September 2022 00:00
The Washington City Mission recently held a tie-dye event for residents. And it was groovy!! City Mission’s Manager of Career Services, Brianna Kadlecik, has hosted 5 tie-dye events for residents over the past 3 years.
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“We started this event in 2020 as a way for our residents and staff to have fun during the COVID lockdown,” she explained. “It was suggested by one of our former residents.”
Throughout the two-hour event, which was held under the pavilion outside of the Men’s Shelter, fifty-five residents and 13 staff participated in the event, making over 70 shirts.
“There is so much joy and gratitude from the residents,” said Kadlecik. “They get excited when I announce sign-ups, and they have so much fun making their shirts. There is so much laughter during the event.”
At City Mission, residents are working very hard to turn their lives around. This tie-dye event is a refreshing and necessary breather from all that intense self-reflection and hard work.
“It’s just plain fun,” Kadlecik explained. “For many of our residents who are in recovery from drug and/or alcohol abuse, it is important for them to see that it is possible to have fun without being under the influence of a substance. It’s also an opportunity for some of our residents to get out of their comfort zones in a low-stakes way. You don’t need to have any experience to make a tie-dye shirt, and it’s a relatively easy and inexpensive activity for them to do in the future.”
“It’s also beautiful to watch the kids making their shirts alongside their mothers,” she added. “Watching the family bond and make memories together is so heart-warming. One of our goals as a Mission is to make this challenging experience of homelessness one of healing and restoration for the men, women, children, and veterans who live here.”
Kadlecik hopes to continue hosting these events as long as residents continue to show interest.
“There are hours of preparation that go into this event, but each and every year the residents prove that it is 100% worth all the time and energy,” she said. “Every year, so many of the men, women, and children surprise me with their creativity and their gratitude.”
