Keys to a New Beginning

Finding More Than A Home

When Linda received that fateful call five years ago, she knew her life was about to change. Her daughter’s ongoing struggle with substance use meant that her grandchildren, Nico and Skylir, needed a safe, stable home. Without hesitation, Linda agreed to become their kinship care foster parent, determined to give them the security and love they needed.

But good intentions weren’t enough to solve the immediate crisis Linda faced: Where would they live?

After temporarily staying with a friend in a 55+ residential community where children couldn’t permanently reside, Linda was running out of options. Rental housing seemed impossible to afford. Her mission to keep her promise proved harder than she expected.

Then, a child welfare caseworker mentioned Bridge Meadows, and everything changed.

“It sounded wonderful,” Linda said, recalling how she felt when she first learned about the Bridge Meadows Redmond community. “Coming to Bridge Meadows meant that Nico could have his own room. He didn’t have to couch-surf at friends’ homes anymore or worry if his little sister was okay. It was a tremendous relief. I knew that with a stable place to live, we would be able to stay together. No matter what.”

At Bridge Meadows, Linda found other grandparents raising their grandchildren, and the relationships she built with a few of her neighbors went beyond friendship to a caring network of chosen family.

Nico and Skylir still talk about two elder “grandfriends” who made a point of celebrating their birthdays every year, baking cupcakes and picking out thoughtful gifts.

Linda also credits her Community Support Manager at Bridge Meadows with helping the family get their footing. “She went above and beyond,” Linda said, describing how she connected them with resources that eased their transition while they healed and rebuilt their routine together.

What Bridge Meadows Offers: Stability That Opened a Door

Bridge Meadows offered Linda’s family the foundation for achieving this milestone on her terms: an affordable place to land, with a community of neighbors and staff who helped her family stabilize during a challenging turn in life events.

Securing affordable rent paired with intergenerational connection and hands-on support gave Linda the confidence in knowing she didn’t have to raise her grandchildren without help. For Linda, the breathing room that came with that affordability and steady assistance inspired her toward building a goal to thrive in a home of their own again.

She’d owned a home once before, and now, working part-time in retail while Nico (now 21) worked as an adult care provider, the two began setting money aside with an eye toward homeownership. Eventually, they connected with a mortgage specialist and started the process of qualifying for a home of their own.

A New Chapter Begins

In the summer of 2025, the family moved into that forever home, just a few miles from their Bridge Meadows Redmond community.

“Skylir got to paint her room any color she liked,” Linda said, laughing. “And out of all the colors to choose from, she picked black! But a promise is a promise.” Bedroom color choice aside, Linda is glad for the fenced yard, which finally gives their dogs, Ranger and Shorty, room to run.

More than a year in, Skylir, now 12, is homeschooling as a sixth grader. Linda’s daughter lives nearby and stays in touch with her kids. The family has settled into a rhythm in a home that’s fully theirs.

Looking back, Linda doesn’t describe her family’s path as a straight line from crisis to stability — it was built one relationship, one resource, one small kindness at a time. Bridge Meadows offered the foundation; Linda and her grandchildren built the rest.

Today, in a home with a black bedroom and a yard where Ranger and Shorty can finally run, their story has come full circle — from an uncertain first phone call to a forever home of their own.

Stories like Linda’s are made possible by donors who believe every family deserves a stable place to land. If you’d like to be part of that, click here to make a gift.