Roberto

Roberto, his sister and ten other individuals came to Evergreen after the institution they were living in was shut down.

Because of their disabilities, these individuals were not able to tell us about what they experienced at the institution. But to our Evergreen team, it was obvious right away that they had experienced terrible things.

Roberto and the other were not used to eating regularly.  For months, our staff would find that they hoarded food. They would fill their beds with scraps they took from the garbage or took out of the freezer. The food would expire and start to smell, but these individuals would protect their decaying heaps of food as if they were pots of gold. It took Evergreen’s staff months of love and patience to help them understand that they would never miss a meal again.of documented cases in which staff neglected, beat and even killed residents. Because of his disability, Roberto will never be able to tell us what he endured while at the institution

Today Roberto whizzes around casting smiles at all the ladies in his electric hoveround. He lives in a community home with five other roommates, all of them are over the age of fifty like Roberto. Because of the love and support services they receive from Evergreen, Roberto and his roommates have thrived in their communities. They spend weekdays at one of Evergreen’s Day Programs and on weekends they enjoy going to movies, restaurants and church.

You’d never guess that Roberto was ever anything but happy if you saw him in his living room, grinning ear-to-ear, as staff lead him and his roommates in aerobic exercises, fast-paced music booming in the background.

Despite what they’ve been through, individuals like Roberto only know how to love. Now it is our job to love them back.

Your gifts help Evergreen give new beginnings to individuals who have come from some of the nation’s worst institutions.