From cleanup to Christmas dinner to a new job, St. Clare lifts family from ashes

GROSSE POINTE PARK — Barb Koster is used to receiving calls for help; she’s the St. Vincent de Paul conference president at St. Clare of Montefalco Parish.

But in September, it was a call from Latoria Hinton that challenged the Grosse Pointe Park parish to step outside its comfort zone. The Hinton family’s home had caught fire when she and her children were out grocery shopping, leaving the family effectively homeless just before the Michigan cold season set in.

“It was this fall when Latoria contact me, saying their house had burned and wondering if there was anything we could do with vouchers for clothing,” Koster said.

Hinton knew she could rely on St. Clare; the parish’s St. Vincent de Paul conference had already helped the family with paying an electric bill and getting a gas card so Latoria could make it to a job interview.

But a burned-out house was something else. Still, that didn’t stop the parish from going above and beyond to initiate what might be one of the biggest St. Vincent de Paul projects in the Archdiocese of Detroit.

The Hinton family had bought the house on Three Mile Road on Detroit’s east side in 2012, within St. Clare’s boundaries, and it was through the family’s involvement in the local block club that the idea first began.

“We got involved in St. Clare when we joined the block club, and our daughter went to a summer camp through the parish,” said Antonio Hinton, who was away at work when the fire happened. “A member from the parish was with the block club at the meeting, saying the parish was looking to help a neighbor with a project.”

That project was originally supposed to be a parish-sponsored Habitat for Humanity build in the Morningside neighborhood, but when Koster informed Bill Harrington, chairman of St. Clare’s Christian service commission, about the Hintons’ need, the parish council found its neighbor in need.

“This is our 90th parish anniversary, and we thought about doing a Habitat for Humanity work, but hadn’t made a decision,” Harrington said. “Then this came up. We wanted to make an intelligent decision about taking on the project, so we walked through the house with a contractor. It was determined that the home was salvageable, and we went to work.”

After getting the go-ahead from the parish council, the St. Vincent de Paul conference and Christian service commission organized a cleanup day the weekend of Oct. 8, boarding up the home and clearing the property of damage and debris.

“We had at least 25 people from the church come down to cut down trees, put up boards, pretty much doing everything to get the house ready to be fixed,” said Antonio Hinton, who said the response from the parish was overwhelming. “What blew my mind, these people didn’t have to do that. But they were out here helping a stranger.”

The help didn’t stop with the house.

The Hintons were living at Latoria’s parents’ home on the city’s west side, but Antonio’s job was in Warren and the children’s school was on the east side, leaving a grueling commute that took a toll on the family car, Harrington said.

By happenstance, Harrington’s son had property on the east side he was willing to rent to the Hintons, and the parish community made sure the family of five could move out of the one-bedroom in which they were living since the fire.

“With all the driving we were doing, the car broke down,” Hinton said. “The people of the parish anteed up for a rental car, and they let us stay in the house for $200 a month.”

Hinton was doing part-time work when the fire happened, but during the cleanup process he met Donald Calcaterra of Dart Construction, who was part of the team of volunteers.

“My boss, the guy I’m working for now, he came and picked up leaves,” Hinton said. “He didn’t have to do that, but he wanted to help. He dealt with Section 8 housing, and said if I need a job, he could get me one. I swear he got me a job in like two weeks.”

The parish also fixed up a Christmas dinner for the Hintons, even providing gifts for the family’s three children. By the time New Year’s Eve rolled around, the Hintons were set up in their new place, ready to take 2017 by storm.

“This was a little above and beyond what we typically do for St. Vincent de Paul,” Koster said. “With the resources the chapter has, there isn’t a lot more than emergency assistance. But to scoop a family out and help with everything, it’s not a typical St. Vincent de Paul response, but with the backing of the parish, it’s what we can do.

“The hope with St. Vincent de Paul is you can lead a family to systemic change,” Koster continued. “This is an amazing opportunity for us to help a family make a lasting change. We’re grateful the family was opened to our assistance, and that we have families in the St. Clare community who are willing to share their resources.”

 

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Help the Hinton family

A GoFundMe account has been established by the St. Clare of Montefalco community to assist the Hintons. The campaign seeks to raise $30,000 for the family. To donate, visit www.gofundme.com/dreamstodevastation.