"A Re-Imagined Life After Addiction"

Thursday night Sept, 13, 2018, the Friends of the Manor hosted a special event at the Silver Spoon restaurant in Wayne PA. We had a packed house of friends and supporters who enjoyed a night of camaraderie, incredible eats and some special guests!

As the small restaurant filled, everyone mingled and nibbled on some hors d’oeuvres. Steve Killelea, the Founder of both the Manor of Hope and Friends of the Manor started off the evening with a brief introduction and welcome to all in attendance.

Next up was Bill Pocklington, one of the Friends of the Manor Board Members and a Building Futures Program partner. Bill has a special connection to the Manor of Hope and not only does he sponsor one of the young men in the Building Futures program, he also spends time with the guys on weekends to play rounds of golf and connect with them personally. Bill has been a true friend to us and a huge part of the team!

One of the highlights of the evening was special guest, Parker, a current resident at the Manor of Hope. He was gracious enough to share his story of addiction and how he finally was able to get to the Manor of Hope and become one of the many success stories of the program.

From his pre-teen days in junior high school, to high school and beyond when his addictions really took root, Parker spoke of homelessness, stealing, lying, the “wrong crowd,” losing connections to his friends and family. He spoke of the night he deemed, “…one of the worst nights of my life,” where he found himself in a public bathroom in the middle of a snowstorm trying to keep warm with a hand dryer. His family never gave up on him! And finally after many years of addiction, hopelessness and other unsuccessful rehab programs Parker’s mom found the Manor of Hope.

Parker fought off tears when mentioning his parents who flew in as a surprise to be in attendance for this event and for his birthday. As he ended his talk, everyone in the room stood up and cheered him on. He’s a true example of what the Friends of the Manor and the Manor of Hope stand for: enhancing the quality of life for young men battling the disease of addiction. (If you’d like to hear more about Parker’s story in his own words, view this video where he talks about active addiction and his plans for the future.)

The Silver Spoon was a great venue for our event this year! They served some of their house specialties like crispy skin salmon and chicken breast roulade which were wonderful and of course, who can forget the dessert? Plates of espresso sugar-dusted doughnuts and chocolate truffles were set out at all of the tables and it didn’t take long for them to disappear! As the evening wound down, everyone sang happy birthday to Parker and a big birthday cake was placed in front of him with candles to blow out. He was completely surprised! It was a true feel-good moment and a wonderful way to end our special evening.

A big thanks to everyone in attendance, your support is much appreciated by all of us as well as all of the young men who are turning their lives around.