Ramon’s Two Journeys: A Family Soars Toward Stability With Bridging

It’s a warm spring Saturday morning, and donations are coming in steadily at the Bridging warehouse in Bloomington.

Ramon backs in his truck and unloads lamps, a bedside table, and some framed pictures.

As a flooring and carpet installer with a reputable Twin Cities flooring company, Ramon meets many clients who are cleaning out furnishings during their remodeling projects. He lets people know about Bridging and encourages them to donate to the organization. He will often transport furniture and household goods people no longer need to Bridging in his truck. He knows someone will choose these items as their own and furnish their home.

At the warehouse door, Ramon meets Bridging group volunteer coordinator Joel. The pair strike up a conversation. Ramon describes what he likes most about Bridging’s mission, and the reason is personal: Ramon and his family came to Bridging to furnish their home nearly ten years ago.

Ramon chose to share his Bridging story with the community by contrasting his two experiences of resettling  in the United States that occurred more than two decades apart. The first journey is a backdrop to his second.

Ramon describes his first journey:

“Just over thirty years ago, my parents brought me and my siblings to the United States. I was young. We lived with family until two months later, we got our own place. It was getting cold. Our neighbor said to wait until after the winter to get furniture. We waited for six months. We drove through the neighborhoods, picking out couches, mattresses, tables, whatever people were throwing away at the curb. That is how we got our furniture the first time.”

Nine years later, Ramon moved back to his home country and lived there for several years. He began to dream and plan for his family’s future in the United States.

This is when Ramon’s second journey began.

In 2016, Ramon moved back to Minnesota with his wife and one of his stepsons. They lived with extended family again for two months. With the help of a local nonprofit, Ramon’s family secured their own home, but then were faced with how to furnish it.

“My reference for what it would be like to furnish our home was what it was like before, all those years ago. Now we all had jobs. We had a car to share. Where my wife was working, someone told her about Bridging. We said, ‘let’s give it a try.’”

“I share the background story because this is what we expected. We thought it would take months to get furniture, and we wouldn’t be able to afford it [because we had to pay so much to get up here].

The foundational home setup that Bridging provided — every item they needed for their home —  has made a lasting impact for Ramon and their family. The Bridging experience of selecting quality items from an array of choices offered affordability and a sense of dignity.

Ramon emphasized the sense of dignity his family felt while furnishing their home at Bridging, in this second journey, and how it soared above the first journey.

At Bridging

“When we got to Bridging, they told us we would get furniture for every room in the house. We thought, ‘Wow!’ They said, ‘Select things for your living room, select a kitchen table. We all got mattresses [beds] to sleep on.”

“I was amazed. I couldn’t believe it. They had options. I couldn’t believe the great condition that everything was in. Previously, we had to settle with what we got. Being in a warehouse with all this furniture, it went way beyond our expectations. I thought we would get one or two pieces. [We got everything for our home].”

A fully furnished home through Bridging made a big difference for Ramon and his family:

“Especially after work, to have a couch. I could lay down on it. It was a relief. I didn’t have to sit on that one chair or lay on the carpet. I could lay down and watch TV. It was satisfying and comfortable. And to have a bed, it was a big relief. We keep our inflatable bed and use it for company [and camping trips].

“We had cooking utensils and pans, so we didn’t have to go out to eat. We could save money. And the pictures we found at Bridging. It really improved the atmosphere. It felt like a real home.”

A furnished home has created long-lasting stability and possibilities for Ramon and his family:

“Now that our home was furnished, we could focus on other things, like buying winter jackets. Our new baby came. We were doing better economically, and we could pay for a crib [and his other needs]. It was helpful that we were all working. It took us four [a few] years to get out of debt.”

Ramon loves his job, and he has advanced in his career. He continues to share the story of Bridging and encourages people to support the organization by donating their household goods.

He likes to “pay it forward.”

“Bridging is the bridge [in the community] connecting the donor — and me —to the family who will get the items, even if I don’t get to meet them.”

“Now we live in a house. We have our youngest son. Now we can focus on other things we like to do as a family — camping and hiking, going swimming and visiting waterparks, or traveling to other places in Minnesota. I tell my wife there are more than 10,000 lakes in Minnesota, and we better start seeing some of them!”