When a child’s stay at home becomes unhealthy, and placement outside the home is necessary, Heartlight offers a place of hope for parents and the teen. The backbone and blessing of Heartlight is its dedicated relational staff that serves as examples to kids, families, and the Heartlight community. Heartlight believes that the Christian life is more caught than taught. So the atmosphere of campus l
ife is set up to establish and form relationships. And through those relationships, staff have the opportunity to share their wisdom to residents. They pick it up by their observation of the staff’s life, reflection of that staff person’s lifestyle and comments, and through experiences that all have together. This happens not only through programmed events, but through the daily interaction with caring adults that surround them. It’s through that interaction that staff get to display a love that shouts “There’s nothing you can do to make me love you more, and there’s nothing you can do to make me love you less.” It’s through this type of interaction that relationships are built, direction is given, hope is expressed, and lives are changed. This is truly a life-on-life experience for staff and residents. Its relational involvement (not as a friend, and not as a parent) that holds to boundaries, loves when someone least expects it, and offers a wisdom that is backed up by an exposed lifestyle.
