BUFFALO, N.Y. — Over 2 years ago, Katia Ruiz of Buffalo made the brave decision to leave her abuser and take her two young children to a domestic violence shelter.
"We didn't have anything. We only came with our clothes," said Ruiz.
So when the time came for Ruiz to move into an apartment, it was bare. That's when Dionne Williamson and her organization Upward Design for Life stepped in.
"She asked us what do we need and I just said I just want a table so I could eat with my kids. But they did way more than that. They gave us the couches. They gave my kids absolutely everything. They gave us a Christmas tree and the presents were incredible," said Ruiz.
Williamson said she was touched by Ruiz's reaction to the home transformation.
"The joy and the gratitude in her face and her heart, you've just got to love her," said Williamson.
Since starting her 501c3 charity in 2018, Dionne has furnished the homes of more than 100 families in Western New York. She helps refugees, and those transitioning out domestic violence shelters, homeless shelters or the foster care system, start a new life.
"I started the organization because there was nothing like this in our area. I wanted to fill a void that wasn't being met," said Williamson, who left her two decade career in tourism to start the charity. "I think everybody should have a safe space and a place to call home and it should have all the things they need to live comfortably and I wanted to be able to create that."
Two On Your Side visited Williamson at her 102nd home transformation in February. She and a team of volunteers were furnishing a home for a mother and her 4 children in Niagara Falls. The new or gently used items are all donated by the community.
"So we're providing the basics but we're adding those special touches to make it complete. We're going to hang the curtains. We're going to put up wall art. We're providing the families with brand new mattresses, pillows and bedding, so they can rest comfortably and wake up the next morning ready for work and school," said Williamson.
Williamson's volunteers for the Niagara Falls project were a team of employees from the architecture firm Trautman Associates. Through a team building program, local companies can sponsor a project and allow their employees to step out of the office for a day to volunteer with Upward Design for Life.
"Through our corporate team building program we now offer companies an opportunity to join us on our mission. It allows the teams to work cohesively together. They're doing the home visits, meeting the clients, and then they're stepping into homes and neighborhoods they might have otherwise never stepped foot in. With this team building project they're able to see it from start to finish," said Williamson.
The volunteers said it was an amazing opportunity.
"I thought this was the perfect way for our office to get out and help the community," said Marisa Scroger of Trautman Associates. "Dionne has got her stuff together and she makes it easy to help. She's super well-organized, but it's just her. So she needs the manpower. She needs the help."
Williamson puts her blood, sweat and tears into every project.
"It's a lot of work that's involved. But at the end of it all when you can see the impact on the family, all the hard work just vanishes away. Because now you know, you have made an immediate impact on someone's life. And I can go to bed at night feeling really good about the work that we did that day," she said.
One day of hard work for Williamson's team is life changing for the family they touched.
"We are still everyday being blessed with everything that they did," said Ruiz.
Ruiz now has a full time job, is going to college, is safe, and eats around the table - provided by Upward Design for Life - with her kids every day.
To learn more about donating to Upward Design For Life or the volunteer opportunities with the charity, click here.
To see others featured in the Selfless Among Us series, click the videos below.
