Missy is making a new life for herself and her family

When Missy opened the door to Mary’s Place with her 8-month-old baby girl and 2-year-old son, she was looking to make a new life for herself and her children.  She wanted to go back to school and find a job so she could support her family on her own. However, with two small children to care for and nowhere to go, she first had to find safe shelter.

Mary’s Place stepped up with a new program: an overnight family shelter hosted at area faith communities. Missy and her kids were the first family to stay at the new shelter, sharing dinner with the volunteers there and building community with the other families. After two long months of searching, Missy found a placement in a family shelter through the YWCA which led to two-year transitional housing. With a stable place to stay, she is back in school, building skills so she can find a job and sustain permanent housing.

She comes back to Mary’s Place every few days to find resources and say hello to staff and other families. She makes a point of sitting with other moms going through the family shelter.  She explains, “I know I can show others that it gets better.  I say, ‘Look at me!  If I can do it, you can do it.'”

Thank you for giving Missy the opportunity to be the mom she knew she could be.