Housing Myth Busting Community Spotlight: Elijah C.
Families CCAN is proud to be a recipient of the PA Developmental Disabilities Council’s Housing Myth Busting grant. The goal of our project is to break down some of the prevalent myths, or falsehoods, about housing for adults with disabilities.
Along with our partners from Self Advocates United as One (SAU1), we are sharing information about Independent Living for Adults with disabilities.
As part of our project, we are sharing a series of Community Spotlight Interviews. These interviews highlight the stories of individuals with disabiltiiles who are living independently in the community.
Our Next Housing Myth Busting Community Spotlight Interviewee is Elijah C. Elijah is an SAU1 Power Coach and a member of the Housing Myth Busting team. He holds a degree from Slippery Rock College and lives in Mercer County, Pennsylvania. In addition to his advocacy work, Elijah enjoys cooking, swimming, and art.
Elijah was interviewed by his SAU1 colleague Gretchen. This interview has been lightly edited for length, but the words are all his own.
Elijah, we know that you live on your own. The information that you provide is so valuable to people with disabilities. Our first question: Elijah, do you live in a city, a small town, or a suburban or rural area?
“[It] is really a small town.”
Do you live in an apartment, a townhouse, duplex, or house?
“I live in an apartment.”
What is one thing you know now that you wish you’d known before you lived on your own?
“When I moved to [this town] last year, in the late summer of 2022, I was doing an internship for my bachelor’s degree in Social work with a service provider, which is based here . . . . I was hoping that when the internship was over that I would be able to get a job with them or one of the other social service agencies in [this town] or Mercer county. There’s quite a few different service providers in Mercer county. But I ended up getting my job with SAU-1, which is mainly remote work, since they moved their office from Greenville, so I guess I wish I would have known before I moved here that I wouldn’t be working at an in-person job right here in [town].”
Who helped you plan your move to your own place?
“My family, my parents helped me with everything. My dad found the apartment and helped me apply for the lease and my family gave me most of my furniture and helped me move it in.”
How are you paying for living in your own place?
“My job with SAU1 is my main source of income right now.”
Do you feel you are receiving enough support? What are those supports?
“I think so. The main support I need right now is transportation, which I mostly get from my parents, although sometimes I get transportation from co-workers to work events or transportation from Mercer County Community Transit, which runs within the county.”
What are some steps you took before you moved from your family home to get ready to live in your own place?
“I actually lived on campus at Slippery Rock University during my senior year there in one of their dormitories, so that probably helped prepare me the most for my experience of living on my own here. Having to really set my own schedule, wake up on my own without anyone else there to make sure I do. And that was also when I really learned to do my own laundry, so that was really important.”
What skill do you think has been most important for living on your own?
“I’d say knowing how to make my own meals and do my own laundry.”
What is one thing that is wonderful about living in your own place?
“I really like all of the space I have. There’s several closets. Two of them are walk-in--big enough to walk around in a little. My apartment complex has an outdoor pool, which I used a lot this past summer. The grounds are nice to walk around, too.”
Do you feel included in your neighborhood?
“I think so. My apartment community, they do some events like parties at different times during the year. I haven’t been to any of those yet, but all the interactions I’ve had with neighbors have all been pleasant.”
How do you get around your neighborhood?
“If I want to go shopping or go far from the apartments I usually need to get transportation from my parents, or if I planned ahead for it, I could get transportation from Mercer County Community Transit.”
Are there any things you want to share about your independent life that weren’t included in these questions?
“I think I pretty much shared most of it. My daily schedule is pretty consistent right now. I guess maybe I wish I was a little bit more socially active outside of work and my family right now.”
What do you like to cook?
“I really like to make salads. I make a lot of salads with chicken. I make pasta dishes, too. Mainly spaghetti and meatballs, and pancakes from a mix. I also like to make eggs in a lot of different ways, including omelets. I really like to make those. That’s another goal I have, is to learn to make even more different kinds of meals.”
“Is there anything you like to do for fun, Elijah?”
In the summer I really enjoyed going swimming in the apartment pool. I wish I could still do that in the winter, but of course it’s not indoors. That was a good source of exercise. Other than that, during my free time, I like to read or draw or watch television. I should make more time for [drawing] than I do.
This project is funded by the Pennsylvania Developmental Disabilities Council. To learn more about the project and how you can get involved, please visit our Housing Myth Busting page.
