Vantaggi
The friends that you make there are usually pretty solid people genuinely wanting to help others and give part of their life to make others' lives better. When you are not in crisis mode and the program is working how it should, there is impact found there, it is not easy but it can make a difference in the lives of some of the kids. I have had some of the former residents tell me that they would not be alive today if it were not for their time at Heartlight. Everything is planned for you so your days are effortlessly full. It is rewarding to see a few of the kids making progress, hitting the goals they make for themselves and building their self worth. A majority of the directors are really caring and loving people who want the best for you and for the residents, it's an honor to know and get to work with them.
Svantaggi
You are signing up to work in an unhealthy work environment because of the kids that you are caring for there, because of that, the staff at heartlight have to work triple time to make the environment healthy and stable, sometimes when people are burnt out and tired that can feel like trying to stop an avalanche with a snow shovel. I found there to be a lack of support for situations that have the potential to be actual life or death, I often heard stories be told of residential staff or residents that were in dangerous situations that could've ended in death (Some do end in death or other horrendous traumas) that are almost told as trophies for the tough things that people went through there. It is probably a trauma and coping response but also just builds the point that it is not a healthy work environment and the mental health of the staff need to be prioritized. It is also disappointing that the organization, claims to have Christian values when the character and nature of Jesus is something that is indirectly mocked and discouraged by the old residential director and the current Executive Director when actually put into practice by the house staff. Often times it felt like the residential staff were treated as dispensable, that they would burn you out in a year and then bring in the next people who were fresh, leaving you burnt out and hurt but their program kept running. It is really hard to work for 7-13 days straight in an intense environment and then have no where to go on your 48 hours off a week. Heartlight does not provide housing for the 48 hours of time off unless you want to stay at work, the kids know you are there and it is hard to actually rest and reset for the next time you are on.