ACTIVE AGE | A woman who survived adversity uses cleanliness to help others

Anthony Dorsey and Betty Dorsey outside the Chester Housing Authority office. Betty teaches cleaning classes for residents of the Chester Housing Authority voucher program. (Monica Herndon / The Philadelphia Inquirer / TNS)

PHILADELPHIA - Betty Dorsey knows all about how to overcome obstacles. She had breast cancer, her husband's truck accident and subsequent unemployment, and a fire in her home. Who would have thought that all of these difficulties would lead her to start her own business and become a writer and mentor?

The Chichester, PA resident just wrote, "Ready, Ready, Ready! Action Plan for a Healthy, Cluttered Home Environment, "a guide produced in collaboration with the Chester Housing Authority. You first met the agency in 2008 when you applied for and participated in the CHA's Housing Choice Voucher program. The house fire and the accident with her husband Anthony (a chef who was then unemployed for a year) had put the couple in financial distress.

Dorsey, 56, had to generate income while her husband was unemployed. Always one with a spotless home, she decided to open her own cleaning service in 2016. She knew how to clean her home, but what about office buildings and other people's houses?

"I did a lot of research and learned that you can be successful if you do something and are passionate about it," he says. "I've always been passionate about cleaning and knew how to clean my own house well because I loved it.

Dorsey explored the science of cleaning, figured out which chemicals were best for which jobs, and learned not to contaminate with cleaning rags. Soon the AGD Manna company was operational. Her husband, who is also 56, and her 35-year-old son Kelvin Vick-Brown work with her.

She started the business fighting lupus, the pain of which can be excruciating at times.

"What I've learned about pain is that the more I sit and complain, the more I can't do the things I have to do for others," she says. "I want to help those who are more in need than me."

About a year after starting her business, Dorsey called the ACH and asked if they could give residents free classes on the best ways to clean their homes.

On the other end of the phone was Mary Militello, director of CHA's coupon program, who was open to the idea. Coincidentally, he told Dorsey during this conversation, the ACH was looking for someone to clean up the administration building. Would Dorsey be interested in the job?

"I said, 'Betty, what a wonderful time, we have a call for tender for cleaning services for our administrative building," said Militello.

Dorsey had never responded to a quote request before but found help through an online concierge service, Clean Guru, which helps small businesses like yours learn more about the appeal process. offers.

The fact that Dorsey is a member of the ACH voucher program made his application for ACH CEO Steve Fischer fascinating.

"Our mission is to encourage program participants, for example, to start a business or to find a better job," said Fischer. "However, we are the goalkeepers of federal funds: If you want to work where you are paid for it (in federal dollars), you have to be competitive and show that you are qualified."

In other words, Dorsey had to win this contract. What he did, Fischer said bluntly.

"You have to pay tribute to Betty and her husband to meet all the requirements," said Fischer.

Dorsey's company now cleans the CHA administration building five days a week and has other private and business customers. In their free courses for ACH residents, they learned how to properly clean a house.

From the start, she noted that many of those in attendance had never learned life management skills, let alone home care. So she started teaching them the importance of having a clean home and how it affects all other aspects of their lives. For example, he told them that at CHA, if a resident fails the inspection because their house is not clean, it jeopardizes their chance to continue living there.

When COVID-19 forced her to personally cancel classes, she worked with CHA to get Ready-Set-Go! To write a step-by-step guide on how to clean room to room that includes cleaning tips as well. for children. The book costs $ 12 and has sold more than 1,000. Dorsey receives a percentage of the profit; the rest support CHA.

"We had to keep it simple and demonstrate a variety of techniques that people can use," including homework for children, because keeping a tidy house is everyone's job, Dorsey said. "We made it beautiful and colorful, easy to read. One of my biggest goals is to get the book out to all housing authorities in the United States. Residents need to be more active to keep their communities clean.

While Militello was helping put the book together, he said Dorsey had done most of the work; Dorsey used a friend's graphic design skills, Polly Foster, to illustrate the book.

"We added a few things to make it work for us, but the content is probably 95% about Betty picking up on what she thought was important," said Militello. "We are very proud of the great job he has done."

While battling her own pain, Dorsey thrives on a positive attitude that keeps her moving at breakneck speed.

"I have legs and arms and I can see and I have the ability to get up and go out in the morning so I feel happy," she said. "I don't want to go to the grave with (nothing) to do."

Let's block ads! (Why?)