Pastor Chuck Relyea and Deborah Smith stand outside the door of Joshua’s House, in the alley that runs from North Avenue to Central. The street address is 55-57 North Ave. in Owego.
A new place for kids to go to ‘get their wiggles out’ is opening in Owego during the Strawberry Festival Block Party on Friday, June 19. Kids getting their wiggles out is how Pastor Chuck Relyea puts his approach to Joshua’s House, located down the alley at 55-57 North Ave. in Owego, N.Y.
“We have lots of rules for kids, lots of dos and don’ts,” Relyea said, “but there’s not much for them to do besides the movie theater. We want to give kids something to do aside from getting into trouble.”
To create that option for kids, Relyea has been working inside the former warehouse, which has an entrance in the alley across from the Rite Aid parking lot that runs through to North Avenue.
Inside there is a performance stage Relyea said will be used for music, DJ’s, and other activities. He’s got a pool table as well, and other activities for the kids. The intention of Joshua’s House is to provide an environment that acts as a refuge for kids with a high-energy atmosphere, Relyea said. He wants to give them a place to belong with positive interaction with the volunteer staff.
The space for Joshua’s House is being donated by Deborah Smith. She explained that the building belonged to her late husband Bruce, and he would be happy to know that it will be used for Joshua’s House. But her connection to the project does not end there.
Smith said she had a youth center on North Avenue for two years, and knows the need for a safe place for kids to congregate. “We used to have thirty or forty kids a night,” Smith said.
With her husband’s illness she was not able to keep the youth center open, but she felt the need remained. Joshua’s House is a renewal of that desire for Smith, but it also has a deeper, personal connection as well.
“My son’s story, as painful as it is, is where the name came from,” Smith said.
Smith’s son Joshua battled addiction, and had successfully transitioned to sobriety. But, he slipped and relapsed, and died from an overdose, according to Smith.
“It just takes one time,” she said, “I hope his tragedy can help others. Smith said the kids that came to her youth center were sometimes 12 going on 25. “Joshua’s House is for all the lost kids,” Smith said, and she knows that just being there with a safe place can help.
One of the kids that came to her youth center was getting in trouble with the law, heading down the wrong path. Smith is proud of the progress that young woman made. “She’s married now, with kids,” Smith said.
Relyea is also concerned about the incursion of drugs into the small town of Owego. He said he grew up in that culture, and after he overcame his own issues with substance abuse he spent ten years studying how to reach out to troubled kids who may be experimenting with drugs. Relyea has two degrees, one in sociology, and another in theology.
“I study people,” Relyea said, “it can be hard to flip a kid, but you can win them over with love.” There’s no strings attached at Joshua’s house, though. “You don’t have to conform to anything to come here,” Relyea said.
Relyea hopes the community will embrace the project at Joshua’s House. “Our goal is to be a part of the community, to get the right team of people together to fulfill the need. We can not do it without the community behind us,” Relyea said. He is hoping people will donate time and materials to make Joshua’s House a success.
Relyea encouraged anyone interested in helping, or just to find out more, to go to facebook.com/JoshuaGodWithUs. Contact can also be made at JoshuaGodWithUs@gmail.com, or (607) 727-3600.
“We’re a group of people who dare to make a difference,” Relyea said. “If we fail, we will fail big. If we succeed, that will be bigger. Failure is not an option, though, our kids hang in the balance.”
