ROANOKE, Va. (WDBJ) — An organization has partnered with a local church to convert a church annex into apartments for seniors, as the affordable housing crisis continues to affect Southwest Virginia.
It was February 2025 when Isabel Thornton showed the annex of Trinity United Methodist Church, which was in need of updates.
The high cost of renovations led the congregation to hand the space over to Restoration Housing to convert it into apartments for people age 55 and older.
More than a year later, the renovations are complete and are now home to several seniors.
Wait list forms quickly
Thornton, with Restoration Housing, said the 15 units are not enough to meet demand.
“15 units is nothing for what we need. We’ve had a huge wait list from the minute we opened up. We had people moving in right away. We have more people moving in, but many that can’t move in because we’ll be maxed out. So if we could do more, we would,” Thornton said.
A resident’s story
David Wicks moved into an apartment at Trinity Commons in April.
“I’m not supposed to be here right now. Because I’m supposed to be dead a long time ago,” Wicks said.
Five years ago, Wicks was struggling with drugs and alcohol. He suffered a stroke, then a heart attack, and survived both. While recovering in the hospital, he received a visit that changed his life.
“During that time span in the hospital, I had this, I guess you would call it a minister come to my room. And he sat down and talked to me for a while. And one of the things he asked me was that, did I know what the word God truly mean to me?” Wicks said.
Through a partnership with Commonwealth Catholic Charities and Restoration Housing, Wicks now lives drug and alcohol free at Trinity Commons.
“I wanted to make change. I wanted to have something better in life. And this program, with Trinity Commons and CCC, gave me that opportunity to do so,” Wicks said.
Housing crisis extends beyond Roanoke
Thornton said she thinks of the seniors the program was not able to house.
“I often hear people complain about the homeless problem in Roanoke. And I would just, if I can say anything, encourage them to look at the situation as something that is not just Roanoke specific. And it is directly correlated with the high cost of housing. It is not directly correlated with Roanoke having a problem or Roanoke doing something wrong or, you know, it’s just everywhere. And what we’re trying to do with affordable housing is just try to solve this problem,” Thornton said.
There are currently seven seniors living at Trinity Commons. Several others are waiting on HUD to approve their applications before they can move in.
Discussions continue on converting large churches with dwindling congregations into housing, as many continue to look for ways to house seniors still waiting for a home.
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Published Aug. 19, 2026 by Natalie Faunce on WDBJ7.
