Life & Work with Stephanie Engelerdt of Forsyth County

Today we’d like to introduce you to Stephanie Engelerdt.

Hi Stephanie, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My journey with this began in 2019 when I read an article about an incredible organization transforming the rooms and living spaces of children who had experienced abuse. Their approach was remarkable: a complete room makeover in just one day, at no cost to the family, driven by the powerful belief that a new environment could spark renewed hope and a fresh start.For these children, the very spaces meant to be safe, like their own bedrooms, can become sources of fear and constant reminders of their trauma.

Moved, I reached out to the organization hoping to volunteer. They emailed back saying – great we would love you to help but we are located in Texas. Well that wasn’t going to work for me here in GA! We kept up communications and a couple of months later they asked if I would be interested in starting a chapter here in GA. I immediately said yes! I told my husband, family and some friends and they all thought I was crazy. At that time, I had 2 kids in High School, a husband that travels for work, a full time job in Finance and 5 dogs! I then mentioned it to Lisa, my friend of 20 yrs., my sister from another mister and probably the only other person I know who matches my crazy! Without hesitation, she said Yes – I’m in! So in 2020, we brought that vision to Georgia, establishing Room Redux Georgia. Today, Lisa and I are Co-Directors of the Chapter.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has not been a smooth road. When we took this on it was right at the beginning of the Pandemic. Government offices were working a skeleton crew and we needed approvals to operate. In addition, reaching out to organizations for referrals was difficult because of the same reason. In addition, you had social distancing and what we do is physically go into homes. Our first transformation required us to all wear masks and have large bottles of hand sanitizer. After that, we had a slow start with raising awareness and most importantly FUNDS! We are not federally funded and still to date do not have any corporate sponsors. Lisa and I knocked on doors, attended functions and leaned on friends and family. What we couldn’t get from them, Lisa and I took from our pockets. We have never turned a child down due to lack of funds.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Our process begins when we receive a referral for a child or children in need. Referrals can come from anywhere—schools, friends, law enforcement, therapists, or community members. Our only requirements are that the offender is no longer in the home and the child is either currently in counseling or has completed or begun counseling.

Once those criteria are met, we evaluate the child’s space, speak with the caregiver, and consult with the child’s therapist. From there, the planning begins. Lisa and I go through every detail with intention and care. We replace all furniture, paint the room, clean or replace carpet, bring in all-new décor, and—whenever possible—never place the bed on the same wall as before. The goal is a completely new look and feel, a true reset.

One of the things that makes Room Redux of Georgia unique is that no two rooms are ever alike. We take extraordinary care to design each space specifically for the child we serve. Their room should feel special—because they are special. Every detail is chosen with them in mind – their personality, their interests and what helps them feel calm, safe and seen.

And the impact of our work is truly transformative. We’ve seen children’s grades improve. We’ve seen them build new friendships. Most importantly, we’ve seen them reclaim their bedrooms—spaces that were once tied to trauma, now becoming places of comfort, confidence, and healing. Also we do all of this in one day and at no cost to the family.

What’s next?
We recently expanded into a warehouse space that now serves as both our storage facility and our offices. Prior to this, all donated items were being stored in my mother’s basement—proof of how determined we were to operate with whatever resources we had.

As we continue to grow, our goal is to establish a sustainable donation pipeline. We plan to accept furniture donations that can be used directly in room transformations Items that aren’t a fit for our projects will be sold. The revenue generated will be reinvested into the organization, creating an additional funding stream that allows us to serve more children and operate with greater financial stability.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://roomredux.org/chapters/atlanta-ga/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100069510758733

Image Credits
Natalie Winegar, Kristin McAfee