The Smith’s Story, from Tracy’s Perspective

The heart monitor company alerted us that Tommy was in danger. We went from relaxing at home in Boone, NC, to immediately driving to our local medical center. Tommy needed critical cardiac care. He was loaded into an ambulance at 2:30am and rushed down to Winston-Salem.

It happened very quickly, and trying to figure everything out was a blur. There were just so many unknowns. While considering his needs and his care, I also had to consider my own. Where will I sleep, how will I eat, what about the kids? Will he be in the hospital for one day or ten? After a nurse told me that he would be hospitalized for at least a few days, that’s when the Family House became our lifeline.

The Family House quickly became more than just a place to stay; it became stability. It gave us a sense of normalcy, when everything else felt like it was spinning.

From the moment I walked through the doors, I felt something shift. I was greeted with a friendly face… it just felt comfortable and like a place of restoration. I was overwhelmed by peace and intentional kindness. And everyone there was going through something, too. This realization helped us feel a sense of solidarity and a lot less alone.

What touched me most was how personal the care felt. Even the smallest interactions mattered: staff remembered our names, and volunteers served dinner and put individual containers of leftovers in the refrigerator for us. After a day of questions and decisions and looming uncertainty, we could come back to people who cared, with a meal waiting for us.

For Tommy, knowing our family had this safe place was part of his healing.

“It was great to know they had a place to come back to and get some rest. I wanted them to be there with me during my hospitalization, so when they left each day, I knew at least they had a place where they could restore themselves.”

Many hands worked together to carry us through that crisis – the staff, the volunteers, the donors, and everyone who makes the Family House possible. They gave us peace, rest, community, and the gift of being present for each other when we needed it most.

-Tracy Smith, a guest from Boone, NC