The Hundred Story Home: A Memoir of Finding Faith in Ourselves and Something Bigger

The Hundred Story Home: A Memoir of Finding Faith in Ourselves and Something Bigger

What if you just trusted the whisper of calling placed on your heart? Kathy Izard was volunteering at Charlotte’s Urban Ministry Center when an unlikely meeting with a homeless man changed the course of her life. She realized that serving at the soup kitchen was feeding her soul, but not actually solving the needs of the homeless population. Rather than brush it off and avoid what she now felt called to take on, she quit her job and took on what seemed like an insurmountable task—building housing for Charlotte’s homeless. Woven together with this uplifting story of social action is Kathy’s personal struggle with faith, forgiveness and fulfillment. In telling her story, Kathy invites you to consider rewriting your own. What’s calling you? As crazy at it seems, it may be crazier not to try. This book will push you to do so much more than you ever thought possible. Publishers Weekly: This touching debut from Izard shares the story of the creation of the Homeless to Homes program at the Urban Ministry Center in Charlotte, N.C. 'Where are the beds?' formerly homeless writer Denver Moore asked Izard in 2007 while they were working in a soup kitchen, a question that stirred a calling in the author. Izard tells of how she quit her job as a graphic designer to start the Homeless to Homes program to help serve Charlotte's homeless, introducing readers to members of the 'invisible' community who become friends and family to her, among them Ruth, who finally can get some medical attention; Raymond, who rejoices in having his own Christmas tree; and Chilly Willy, whose erratic behavior prevents his participation in the program. Alongside the story of the program, Izard explores how her experiences shifted her faith. Although she believes she hears voices encouraging her, Izard is reluctant to admit she has received a calling. But when she finds herself struggling to secure funding and to convince neighbors to back the project, some lucky coincidences (which she later defines as 'God-instances') begin to sway her faith and make her reconsider the voices in her head. Izard's inspiring story is a seamless blending of personal memories and information about her project to help the homeless. Kathy Izard was an award-winning graphic designer for twenty years in Charlotte before launching the pilot program Homeless to Homes for the Urban Ministry Center in 2007. She successfully demonstrated this Housing First program could succeed and led the city-wide effort to build Moore Place which now houses over one hundred chronically homeless men and women. Kathy has written about her path to finding faith and a calling in The Hundred Story Home which received a 2017 Christopher Award. Her community work has also earned the Bank of America Neighborhood Excellence Local Hero Award and the NC Housing Volunteer of the Year Award. Kathy, her husband and four daughters have made Charlotte, N.C. their home for over thirty years. www.kathyizard.com The Hundred Story Home A Memoir of Finding Faith in Ourselves and Something Bigger By Kathy Izard Thomas Nelson Copyright © 2018 Kathy Izard All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-0-7852-1988-0 Contents Author's Note, xi, Prologue, xiii, 1. Six Candles, One Wish, 1, 2. Do Good. Love Well., 9, 3. No Casseroles for Crazy, 15, 4. Headed for Home, 25, 5. A Heart with a Hole, 31, 6. Soup and Salvation, 37, 7. Failure Is Not an Option, 47, 8. Working My Way Home, 59, 9. Going for a Ride, 67, 10. Home Tour, 79, 11. Million-Dollar Larry, 87, 12. Wing and a Prayer, 95, 13. Trash and Treasure, 105, 14. Praying to a God You Don't Believe In, 115, 15. Home Alone, 125, 16. Christmas Miracles, 133, 17. Papers and Prayers, 143, 18. The First Yes, 155, 19. Crazy or Called, 163, 20. Gifts from Above, 171, 21. Bless and Multiply This Small Amount, 185, 22. Just Listen, 195, 23. The Last, Best Yes, 205, 24. I Feel Like People Now, 215, 25. God Was In It, 223, 26. Trust the Whisper, 233, The Last Word, 237, Reader's Guide, 239, Frequently Asked Book Club Questions, 242, Acknowledgments, 247, Notes, 253, About the Author, 257, CHAPTER 1 SIX CANDLES, ONE WISH We all must leave home to find the real and larger home. — Richard Rohr It was the day I will always remember in the year I will always wish I could forget. Standing on my toes and looking over the edge of her large green drafting table, I watched my mom carefully creating ten works of art. She was curled over in concentration so she could work closer to her pencil. We were in the spacious art studio added on to my parents' bedroom in our new split-level home. My family of five had just moved into this four-bedroom house on the last street of a new development on the west side of El Paso, Texas. The art studio was a twenty-by-twenty-foot room with vaulted ceilings and natural light streaming in the windows. There were two kilns, easels, canvases, acrylic and oil paints, along with cabinets brimming with