Life has not been kind to Lisa Van de Velde. The twentysomethings have not known a warm home. “In short, my father couldn’t keep his hands off me,” she says. “My parents separated, but things were very difficult at home. My brother and I didn’t get along. At a certain point it was enough for my mother and she threw me at the door. I was 19 and in my seventh year at school Office.”
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She moved ten times in three months. “I was really everywhere, sleeping with friends and acquaintances. That was very difficult. I also spent some time in crisis housing and slept in youth hostels. But that situation could not be sustained. Even though I doubted everything and everyone, I made a mental connection. I went into survival mode because I wanted to get my degree at all costs. This is not the time to lay down and stop everything, I told myself.”
Supported Independent Living
When she was just twenty, she entered a Supported Independent Living program in Antwerp, a service that supports young adults who are going to live alone. “That went fairly quickly, I was allowed to come for an interview and two days later my process had started. First I stayed in a house with seven other young people, then I was able to stay in a studio for myself. The care providers supported me every step of the way and, for example, helped me apply for a living wage.”
“I did not choose to become homeless, to be abandoned and to lose my home”
Lisa Van de Velde
When that guidance came to an end, Lisa started looking for an apartment. “I found one in Wilrijk, but then corona broke out and everything I had experienced in recent years hit me in the face. I realized I really needed help.”
Sofa surfing again
She was admitted to a psychiatric institution for three months. “It was a crisis admission,” she says. “During that period I had a friend stay in my apartment. But apparently she played it up so much that my landlord terminated the lease. When I left the institution, I suddenly had no roof over my head.”
And so the misery began again. “I went back to sofa surfing with friends and acquaintances. And then out of sheer necessity I contacted my father again. I asked him if I could register at his address, because without an address you won’t get anywhere.”
“The fear remains that I will lose this apartment again. I never find one hundred percent peace.” — © Joren De Weerdt
She managed to continue working on her mental health in an institution in Duffel. “That recording helped me a lot. As a result, I felt strong enough to start studying again to become a counselor in youth and disabled care.”
“Having a roof over your head is crucial to building a stable life”
Lisa Van de Velde
For a while she also moved in with her father. “He was hardly ever home anyway. I used his pay slips to present in the search for a new, stable place to live.” She has now found it, in Nijlen. “I have been living here for two years now, but because of the journey I have taken, I still fear that I will lose this apartment again. I never find one hundred percent peace.”
Vicious circle
In April, Lisa will start a new job at poverty organization Staan vzw. “I will become a bridge worker there and I will help guide young people who are homeless or have psychological problems,” she says. She has also been a volunteer for many years at Betonne Jeugd, an Antwerp organization that works with young people in poverty.
Sharing her story is important to her. “Many people have the cliché idea that those who are homeless cannot do anything or want nothing. But I didn’t choose to become homeless, to be abandoned and to lose my home. So much is out of your control. Suddenly you find yourself in a vicious circle and as soon as you no longer have an address, you can hardly do anything anymore. Having a roof over your head is crucial to building a stable life.”
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