I met Bill Heines while working on a story last November about Chapel House celebrating its 10-year anniversary. Chapel House is a nonprofit organization that serves homeless people in Cayuga County.
On that day, Bill, 58, was moving into the transitional housing facility on Grant Avenue, where he would share a 12-by-12 room with a another man.
It wasn’t the best accommodations, but for Bill it was better than no accommodations at all.
Bill was previously living in Pennsylvania working in a plastics manufacturing plant when he was laid off in 2017. Unable to find work, he could no longer pay his rent and faced being homeless, again.
Bill Heines heads to Cayuga Community College to use the career center to search for work. With no car, Heines has to rely on walking when he needs to be somewhere.
Kevin Rivoli, The CitizenA father and grandfather but never married, Bill’s family and relatives were not in a position to help.
Through Facebook, he reached out to Chapel House executive director Christine Thornton, who had helped him in the past with episodes of homelessness when he was living in Auburn.
Nicole Caltafano was assigned as his caseworker and with her assistance Heines began working his way through the transition process at the Cayuga County Department of Human Services. He needed medical attention as he had not seen a doctor in over 14 years.
Caltafano was there to guide him and offer the tools and support to successfully regain his independence. The rest was up to Bill.
Bill Heines walks down the narrow hallway to his room at the Chapel House transitional housing facility after a long day of doctors appointments and job searching.
Kevin Rivoli, The CitizenA high school dropout, Bill worked in manufacturing and as a laborer most of his life. Years of hard physical work ravaged his body. He abused alcohol but now boasts of being four years sober.
Heines was a nervous wreck when Caltafano finally got him in to see a doctor. He was convinced that the results of a physical would bring bad news. He thought for sure he would be told he had cancer. He did not. However, he does suffer from severe neck and shoulder pain due to arthritis, bone spurs and nerve damage. The resulting pain limits his employment opportunities to non-repetitious light duty work.
Heines was a favorite among the other residents because of his happy-go-lucky, outgoing personality. Even when he was down in the dumps about his own situation he always seemed to be able to produce a smile on his face. He became a father figure, counseling some of the younger residents drawing from the tough lessons life had taught him.
In March, Caltafano finally told Bill the news he had been waiting for. She had found an apartment for him to share with three other men. A week later Thornton offered him a part-time job as an overnight monitor at the Chapel House shelter.
“He did everything we asked of him,” said Caltafano.
Today, things are looking up for Bill, who hopes to one day reunite with his son and grandchildren in Pennsylvania. But for now, he’s found a home away from home in Auburn.
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Bill Heines, 58, turned to Chapel House for help after being laid off and becoming homeless.
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With all his belongings under his arm, Bill Heines walks to the transitional housing unit, run by Chapel House, where he will live until he can piece his life back together.
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Bill Heines ponders his new surroundings in the 12-by-12 room he will share with another individual at the Chapel House transitional housing unit.
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Chapel House caseworker Nicole Caltafano discusses the plan and procedures she has developed to help Bill Heines get back on his feet.
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Bill Heines sits quietly in his room frustrated by the situation he finds himself in.
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Bill Heines heads to Cayuga Community College to use the career center to search for work. With no car, Heines has to rely on walking when he needs to be somewhere.
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Bill Heines enters the career center at Cayuga Community College to search for work.
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Bill Heines scrolls through jobs at the career center at Cayuga Community College. Utilizing the career center is part of his responsibility under the Chapel House program.
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A stranger bums a cigarette from Bill Heines in front of the Cayuga County Office Building. Heines was having a smoke before his appointment at the Department of Human Services.
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Bill Heines has his picture taken by clerk Marjorie Coffin at the Cayuga County Department of Human Services.
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With no WiFi at the chapel House transitional housing unit, Bill Heines spends late nights in Walmart so he can access the internet on his tablet.
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Chapel House caseworker Nicole Caltafano gets Bill Heines to relax with laughter before seeing a doctor for a physical. It's been 14 years since he last saw a physician and had convinced himself that he would received news that he had cancer. He did not.
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A nurse takes Bill Heines' weight and height before seeing the doctor.
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Bill Heines grimaces with shoulder and neck pain while trying to take off his jacket during a doctors visit for a physical.
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Dr. Adam Duckett gives Bill Heines a thorough physical.
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Bill Heines browses the craft fair tables on the first floor of the hospital with Chapel House caseworker Nicole Caltafano after his physical.
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Bill Heines walks down the narrow hallway to his room at the Chapel House transitional housing facility after a long day of doctors appointments and job searching.
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Bill Heines plucks on a old guitar he received as a Christmas gift from a stranger after reading about Heines in a previous news story.
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Bill Heines spends much of his time waiting for the day he can leave the Chapel House transitional housing facility for a place of his own.
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After six months living in the Chapel House transitional housing facility, Bill Heines finally has a place of his own. Heines hangs a picture of his granddaughter, Irie, in his bedroom in the apartment he shares with three other men in Auburn.
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After six months in the Chapel House transitional facility, Bill Heines moves into an apartment where he has his own bedroom.
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Bill Heines checks out the full size refrigerator at his new apartment.
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Bill Heines enjoys the privacy of his own room in the apartment he shares with three other men. After six months living in the Chapel House transitional facility, Heines is thrilled to be out on his own.
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Bill Heines enters the Chapel House shelter where he starts his new part time job as an overnight monitor.
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Chapel House shelter manager Bill White goes over the details of the job with Bill Heines on his first day.
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Bill Heines chats with Chapel House shelter caseworker Michael Brennan and volunteer Donna DeLand, left, about working at the facility.
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Bill Heines talks with Chapel House executive director Christine Thornton, right, while visting his caseworker, Nicole Caltafano, center.
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Bill Heines receives a congratulatory hug from his Chapel House caseworker, Nicole Caltafano, after he successfully made it through the program and is now living in his own apartment with a part time job.
Kevin Rivoli, The Citizen
