From Kansas to Juneau - volunteer to director
For much of his life Lance Young believed life is hell and then you die.
Faced with the personal demons of depression, homelessness and dependency on drugs and alcohol, Young said it took going through hell to realize what heaven is.
As director of the downtown homeless shelter the Glory Hole, he has had first-hand experience in what many of the clients deal with on a daily basis.
"It's like if you read a book or you talk to someone who's homeless and you say, 'Oh, I understand being homeless now.' Well, obviously, you don't," Young said. "It's the same thing with drugs and alcohol."
Although Young has no formal training in social work, he says his ability to feel others' pain provides him with a valuable tool in helping them conquer their own demons.
Inside of every person, Young said, there is a voice telling the truth, and the key to self-awareness is listening to what your mind already knows.
"One of the hardest things you can ever do is be totally honest with yourself," Young said.
In March 2002, Young, 46, replaced Joan Decker as director of the Glory Hole, run by a board of church representatives.
Personal misfortune brought him to Alaska from Clay Center, Kan., in 1999, when a stray spark from a wood stove burned his house to the ground.
"Two months later I was dying. I could feel myself dying from within," Young said.
Glory Hole looking for food donations for Thanksgiving
THE JUNEAU EMPIRE 2002
The Glory Hole, the downtown homeless shelter and dining hall, is taking donations for its annual Thanksgiving dinner.
The shelter needs 200 turkeys, stuffing, instant potatoes, canned pumpkin, evaporated milk and cranberry sauce.
"We need whatever we can get," Director Lance Young said. "We're not even close to having 200 turkeys."
The shelter also is looking for volunteers to help with the dinner and cleaning chores.
The dinner will begin 6 p.m. Thanksgiving Day. Take-out food boxes will be available for those who want to celebrate the holiday at home.
About 125 people attended last year's dinner, Young said, so it's a good idea to arrive early to ensure a spot at the table.
He turned the mishap into opportunity by doing something he had dreamed of for years: picking up everything he owned and moving to Alaska.
After working at a cannery and on a shrimp boat in Southeast, Young ended up in Juneau in 2000. While staying at a hostel, Young said a voice in his head told him to volunteer at the homeless shelter, where he was offered a job as a cook.
While working at the Glory Hole, Young had the opportunity to help others, but the experience also helped him to deal with his own pain.
"When I grow, the people around me grow," Young said.
Observing the adversity and pain of many who come to the Glory Hole has given Young the chance to identify the root of their anger and his own.
"You can see where the root comes from, and you can deal with it you solve it. It's baggage. It's like peeling an onion. You're getting rid of layers," Young said.
Corey Deines, an employee at the Glory Hole, attests to Young's effectiveness at the shelter.
"He plays no games," Deines said. "You don't have to wonder where you stand with Lance."
As a person who has dealt with substance abuse and homelessness, Deines said, "It is very hard to pull the wool over Lance's eyes."
Calling him caring and compassionate, Deines said Young takes time to get to know the clients.
He recalled when he and Young were making the rounds at stores that donate food and clothing to the shelter, and Young noticed a Glory Hole regular walking along Glacier Road and gave him a ride downtown.
"I learned more about this guy from Lance talking to him than I would have otherwise," Deines said. "He talks with every client to get a feel for them, and he remembers people who came in from two years ago."
Glory Hole regular Sondra Close, 60, said Young has made the place safer by getting to know the people.
"He wants to make it safe in here. We used to have a lot of fights, a lot of drinking in here," she said. "What I like about it is that he does put them out because of the fact that this is not a place that you can just come and abuse people.
"People were getting abused, and they were abusing themselves and they were abusing the staff, and he put a stop to it."
Along with making the Glory Hole safe for its employees and patrons, Young is working to provide transitional housing to help get people back into society.
The first step, though, is helping people realize that to help yourself you have to face your own demons with vigilance and honesty, he said.
"There is inside of you - everybody - that voice, guaranteed," Young said. "Call it God, call it whatever you want. It's inside of you, you already have it, you just have to find it. When you do, it will lead you to places that you can never imagine."
Timothy Inklebarger can be reached at timothyi@juneauempire.com.