PRESS CHRISTMAS FOR ALL: 'Wounded healer' overcomes painful past to serve others
As part of the annual Press Christmas for All campaign, we share with readers the stories of those who have received help from the program. This is one of them.
Tragedy and trauma enveloped Shawn Sansaver in the wake of his 16-year-old daughter's death on New Year's Day nearly 18 years ago.
Lyndsy Marie Sansaver went to a dance but never made it home. She was killed by a drunk driver.
“She was pronounced dead instantly,” Sansaver said in a YouTube video shared by Heritage Health.
The pain was unbearable. Sansaver self-medicated with drugs and alcohol. He had money in the bank, so he took time off work.
“That turned into two years off work and broke and then homeless,” he said. “But with the help of Heritage Health, I’m doing a lot better.”
Sansaver was in a low place when he connected with Heritage Health's Street Medicine team. He was homeless and struggling to make ends meet while still pushing back pain from a grieving process he never allowed himself to go through.
With help from Heritage Health, Sansaver quit drinking.
"His symptoms declined, and we stuck with him until we got him housing,” Heritage Health certified peer specialist Two Feathers said. “St. Vincent de Paul — we work with them very closely — they did a really good job as they always do with our people. They get them housed as soon as they can, and we really appreciate that.”
Heritage Health Street Medicine Clinic Director Chris Green said most people don’t understand the connection between health care and housing.
"But they are intricately linked,” he said. “For me, health care is about happiness, it’s about wellness, it’s about whole health connectedness. Having a house is part of that wellness, a place to call your own, a place to lay your head at night to go to sleep.”
Sansaver now volunteers with the Street Medicine program, doing whatever he can to help unhoused community members keep warm, stay fed and work toward getting their lives back. He is also starting his own program, One of Us Ministries, to provide weekend snacks for those in need when meal sites are closed.
“I know what my process was like," he said. "I now know how to try and reach out to somebody else who wants help."
Green said Sansaver represents the full circle of healing and health.
"I call us 'wounded healers,'" Green said. "We all have our wounds that drive us toward healing, and we use our lessons to help others along that path."
He said Sansaver's story is unique and amazing, yet there are many others like him in the work they do.
"The difference for him is that he's taking his success and he’s paying it forward and he’s modeling it for others," Green said.
At the time Sansaver connected with Press Christmas for All, he was homeless with no income and in need of new tires for his truck.
"The tires were cracked; they were so old they were ready to blow," Sansaver said. "I submitted that application and you guys came to my rescue with four new tires from Les Schwab and I can get around safely wherever I need to go."
He said he appreciates how Christmas for All is able to make such large impacts on people's lives.
"You help with whatever need is needed, and I think that’s really cool," he said.
Each year, Press readers donate generously to Press Christmas for All. Every penny raised is distributed to Kootenai County residents. Less than one percent of the funds raised go to overhead costs.
The gift recipients are our neighbors who are struggling, including the elderly, people with disabilities, veterans, the homeless and those with mental illnesses. Many who seek assistance from Christmas for All are working, but living in poverty.
Beneficiaries of Press Christmas for All keep their dignity while the community provides a hand-up to help get them back on their feet.
Press Christmas for All is managed by The Hagadone Corp., with assistance from CharityReimagined.Org. It is a legally recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit, run entirely by volunteers.
Here are four ways to donate:
• Mail a check to Press Christmas for All, 215 N. Second St., Coeur d'Alene, ID 83814.
• Call The Press and make a secure credit card donation over the phone: 208-664-8176.
• Visit cdapress.com. Click on Christmas for All and make a secure online donation.
• Drop off your check at The Press weekdays between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. at 215 N. Second St. in downtown Coeur d'Alene.
A heartfelt thanks to our recent donors
Karen Wells, Therese White, James & Christine Brittain, Amy Mayer, Sherry Bradley, Ron & Bev Noble, T.R. & Lavonne Lloyd, To honor LCMD Brenn Frei Suhako and all serving our county overseas, Craig & Sharie Frei, In Memory of our military members lost in service, Gold Star families, Shari Frei, Douglas & Dorothy Schedler, Nancy Wright, Paul & Audrey Hakala
