Pittsburgh-area support group helps people declutter their homes and minds
IRWIN, Pa. (KDKA) — A Westmoreland County organization is stepping up to help people start their journey to declutter their homes and minds.
When stuff starts piling up at home, it can become difficult to dig your way out. A new support group could help hoarders, collectors and people who have issues with clutter or organization.
"There's truly a lot of need for that. Hoarding disorders is something that is very underserved. I was not really able to locate any formal program anywhere on this side of the state," said Matt Williams, founder of Fight the Blight, a non-profit organization based in Irwin.
The support group is part of a program put together Fight the Blight and funded by the Community Foundation of Westmoreland County.
Williams said there will be 16 group sessions that will run for two hours. Each will be based on a chapter from the book, "Buried in Treasures," which outlines a program for helping people with hoarding disorder.
Williams said the sessions can help people manage all levels of clutter.
"We're not judgmental in any way of their situations. We're just here to kind of talk it out and really help people to take a look, maybe why they're doing some of the things on a deeper level and try to identify what is the cause for this," he said.
The program also includes funding for in-home and on-site assistance with sorting and organizing.
"As well as, of course, the actual removal of the items and relocation from their property as needed. And also for more severe cases, there's even funding for additional formalized therapy," Williams said.
Fight the Blight was formed to address blight and help homeowners who can no longer maintain their properties, with a focus on helping elderly and disabled people.
In the last year, Williams learned hoarding is a complex disorder and that people often don't know how to address it.
"Hoarding disorder causes a number of different problems, not only for the person affected by it but those around them as well, their family, friends, neighbors. Often, the clutter can spill out to the exterior and becomes kind of a blight situation," Williams said.
For anyone who feels like they're buried in the mess, he wants them to know they are ready to help sort the physical clutter and clutter in the mind.
"They think they are alone in their situation, and I would like them to know that they are not," Williams said.
The first support group session is scheduled for Feb. 22 at 6:30 p.m. at the Norwin Chamber of Commerce. Just RSVP by calling or texting 724-739-3785 or emailing Fighttheblightinc@gmail.com.
The nonprofit is also still helping with exterior blight, including debris removal and lawn maintenance.