Allan Barsema Builds Life Recovery Plans

The dictionary definition of a carpenter is someone who "builds or repairs wooden structures or their structural parts," which is akin to what Allan Barsema helps do for the people who come through the doors of The Carpenter's Place each day. The Carpenter's Place is a "homeless day center" - a unique place to find compassion and constructive tools that help people rebuild the structure of their lives. It all started when Allan Barsema pulled himself back from the ledge where he had gone in despair after losing his family and his business. Sitting in his car, overlooking a place of natural beauty, he suddenly realized he wanted to live and that there was a bigger plan in store for his life. He had reached the bottom and the only way to go was up. Over the next 10 years with help from his parents, he quit drinking and put his life back together, including starting a construction company and getting remarried. In the neighborhood where he set up shop he saw a lot of people down on their luck. Feeling grateful for his turnaround he decided to open the doors and invite some of the people in. That simple gesture led to the establishment of The Carpenter’s Place and Barsema’s full-time devotion to running it. In addition to helping people locally, Barsema helped develop a web-based software system that allows caseworkers to collaborate on cases, cutting time and reducing errors. The system has proved so successful in improving efficiency it has been copied in other states and is under review for adoption at the federal level. Barsema estimates that 10,000 “guests” have come to The Carpenter's Place in the last decade. “Last year The Carpenter's Place helped 321 guests transition into housing, 114 secure jobs and 99 complete job training.” There's no denying Allan has built a structure that brings value to his community and the people who live there.