Tender Mercies, Inc.

Christopher Kovaleski, Summer 2013

Tender Mercies is a 24/7 live-in shelter for homeless individuals with a history of mental illness. Their stated mission is to “[transform] the lives of homeless adults with mental illness by providing security, dignity, and community in a place they call home”. The facilities of Tender Mercies are set up like a dormitory in that residents are free to come and go as they please. Resident service coordinators and volunteers are largely tasked with setting up activities and making sure the residents have a good experience. As the medical interns, the other intern and I held nutrition/exercise classes, drop-in clinic hours, and a Mentorship program in order to facilitate better health awareness at Tender Mercies.

While I have learned to be more efficient in taking blood pressures and the proper method of painlessly sticking someone's finger for a PPG, the most valuable aspect of my internship has been the ability to connect and communicate with a population that I might not have had contact with otherwise. Despite the connotations of the labels “homeless” or “mentally ill”, I am reminded again and again of the utter normalcy of the lives of the residents of Tender Mercies. I began working closely with J., one of the youngest residents at 21 y.o., who decided to come to our exercise classes because he “wanted a 6-pack. You know, to get the ladies”. J. loves McChickens and playing basketball. He worries about girls and stresses out about job interviews and talking to his mom. If not for his place of residence, he could easily be any one of my friends.

We also take residents out on walks as part of an effort to engrain fitness into our residents' lives. D. is an older lady with some balance issues that insisted on taking us on a tour of the city. As she pointed out new shops and what used to be there 20 years ago, I felt like my grandmother was talking about her old hometown to me — especially when D. started asking me about girlfriends and if I was willing to meet some of her neighbor's grandchildren sometime.

Ultimately, the most rewarding experience of this summer has been the opportunity to form relationships with residents and staff. I love being able to walk around our site and be happily greeted by each RSW. I enjoy being sassed by V. and C. for not remembering to tuck in my shirt. The ability to connect with each resident's humanity has been essential to realizing the full potential of this internship and is something I hope to keep with me throughout my future medical career. While I may have worked to institute a measure of health awareness for Tender Mercies, it would be a disservice to my experience if I said Tender Mercies has not benefitted me more.