When Dana Leavitt moved back to her hometown of Longview, she couldn't think of anything she wanted to do more than to have a girls' night with old pals. This mother of two was ready to let her hair down for an evening with fun friends and fine food, but she wanted this party to have more of a purpose.
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Galanda Anderson works to improve and inspire the lives of local women at the Outreach Redemption House.
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Galanda's daughter, Sequoyah, assis women in the small on-site clothing boutique.
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This motel-turned-shelter has the capacity to house as many as 56 women.
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With the help of her good friend, Longview resident Kerri Daugbjerg, Dana sent out 100 invitations to women to attend a girls' night out at her home. The inscription on the invitations read: "Enjoy cocktails and hors d?oeuvres while helping donate items to the Outreach Redemption House for Women."
"When I decided that I wanted to do more volunteering in Longview, I went by the Redemption House to speak with the founder," Dana said. "After we talked, I knew this was a program that I really wanted to support in any way possible, so Kerri and I hosted a party to spread the word on this amazing organization."
Heart of the matter
The Outreach Redemption House is a program designed to house women who are seeking deliverance from substance abuse, mental disorders/illness or coming out of prison with a desire to better themselves. Located on Marshall Avenue, this motel-turned-shelter has the capacity to house as many as 56 women.
"This is a place for down-and-out women to start their lives over again," said Galanda Anderson, founder. "My purpose in life is to take broken women and build them back up. I'm on a mission to help as many as I can."
The heart of Redemption House stems from experiences in Galanda's childhood. She grew up in a family plagued by mental illness and paranoia. They were constantly without a home, bouncing from shelter to shelter seeking refuge. Her troubled childhood turned into an even more difficult adulthood. By the age of 30, she had hit rock bottom and just knew there was no hope for a 9th-grade dropout.
"I turned to the Lord and told Him that if He helped me, I'd spend the rest of my life praising Him and spreading His word," Galanda said. "I went to church, and the sermon spoke to me, so I went back week after week, and I started believing in myself again. I knew then what my purpose was."
True transformations
Galanda looks at her pained past as a blessing in disguise. For example, because she moved from shelter to shelter she was surrounded by people from all walks of life. Her experiences help her communicate effectively with a variety of people today.
"I took everything bad and turned it around to make it good; now I speak out and give my testimony on my life and how I've changed," she said. "There's no feeling more rewarding than being free to help someone in need — we as a people need to help each other. God freed me from my pain so I could build others back up from despair."
Her goal is to help women, not just on their spiritual journey, but also in their practical living. Part of the spiritual journey is holding church services in a small room at the shelter. Part of the practical side is teaching a beauty class and providing a small clothing boutique that her daughter, Sequoyah, runs, appropriately named Sequoyah's Boutique. When the women are ready, Galanda also helps them find jobs.
"The boutique is more like a dress-for-success program. It's full of barely-worn, donated clothing for the women to put on and look their best," Galanda said. "A woman needs to feel like a lady from head to toe in order to regain her confidence."
Through it all, this barely year-old shelter has seen more than 130 enter its doors. During their stay, a metamorphosis occurs, and these broken women are transformed into confident, beautiful butterflies.
"When I see the transformation in these women the same way I was transformed, it's an awesome experience," Galanda said. "I'm absolutely not the same person I once was, and neither are they. When you find confidence and purpose in your life, everything falls into place."
