BECKLEY, WV (WOAY) – Trauma therapist Michelle Dolph-Burgess recently walked into Ashley Furniture with a vision and limited budget and walked out with a friendship.
After explaining what Just for Kids is about to sales/store manager Mark Davis, he pulled out every stop to ensure they would have what they needed for their trauma suite.
“All I wanted was a couch,” Dolph-Burgess said, adding that Davis asked if she needed anything else. “I said, ‘Well, a chair or table would be nice’ and he provided it without question.”
“And we discovered that they have a program as well that assists families and children that really meld well with what we do,” said Just for Kids executive director Dr. Deanee’ Johnson.
The Just For Kids furniture donation and Ashley Furniture’s Hope to Dream (which provides children in need with a twin mattress, bed frame, bedding and pillow) will be transformative for Dolph-Burgess and the kids.
“I think about her sitting in that chair or the older children that she has therapy with sitting here or maybe her sitting here and talking to the children in the area there,” Davis said.
“So it’s really good and I can’t think of a better place for this furniture to be and better people to have it.”
Everything happens for a reason.
“I was floored, he made my day,” said Dolph-Burgess. “He even said God brought us together and I truly believe that.”
Just for Kids strives to provide a trauma-informed space of safety and comfort.
“Down to the colors of the wall to the furniture that they sit on,” Johnson said. “So they feel as though they can let their guard down a little and relax, build rapport with the staff that we have and then become more comfortable with telling their story of trauma.”
Switching offices to this new space and the serendipitous moment that launched it all is not lost on Dolph-Burgess.
“When I switched, I had two chairs. With kids — how I get them to open up, we use play therapy a lot,” said the trauma therapist. “So we played our games on the floor, but kids like being on the floor. So I was looking for the couch.”
When Davis first crossed paths with Dolph-Burgess he thought there had to be a way Ashley Furniture could help, but says he doesn’t make those decisions. So he contacted the company owner, who quickly got things rolling. It became a team effort and they never looked back.
“I can’t think of a better cause. These ladies are phenomenal at what they do here,” the sales/store manager said. “This is a great place. We shouldn’t have needs for this type of service but if we’re going to have it, these are the ladies that need to be involved.”
