My Name is Carol and I am 39 years old. I’m humbled to share with you my story and how I succeeded through UMOM New Day Centers homeless shelter for families.
My childhood was transient – always moving. Hard to know growing up what stability is if that’s not what you are used to. My mother worked a lot and was seldom home. I grew up on sugar sandwiches…she was never there to cook when I was younger. By the time I was 13…she finally started to get herself together, but my patterns were mostly formed by then. That’s why I was 15 with my first child.
I was 20 when my first daughter was born and 21 when my second daughter came into the world. I married my daughters’ father and he was abusive before the children, after the children and during the whole relationship. I always knew that I was supposed to live another way, a better way. After years of struggling to finalize the divorce, I was finally on my own.
Like so many of the families at UMOM right now… I was employed at a job that I loved, and I lost that job. I looked for another job everyday. All I needed was to be able to earn an income and provide for my daughter.
Arriving at UMOM, at first I felt like, how did I get here, what am I doing here, and why me. I was not so much embarrassed as I was mad at myself for allowing this situation to get to me.
Having all the UMOM programs here on campus was important because discipline and guidance is one of the main reasons that the majority of us have ended up in this situation that we are in. Knowing my family wouldn’t go hungry meant better sleep at nights.
UMOM’s employment services gave me the opportunity to utilize the different employment engines on the internet, it gave me access to materials that informed of employers that were hiring at the moment.
It gave me one on one counseling with an employment specialist who took her job seriously, she told me what was needed and what was (t.m.i.) too much info, she told us what was proper attire to wear to interviews and took us to employment fairs, she also set us up with real H.R. personnel who conducted mock interviews with us.
Which is how I obtained my job. Thank you Sue….
As a direct result of Sue’s efforts with employment opportunities, I was able to meet and eventually be hired by a great company.
That’s what UMOM does best……they understand the struggle of finding employment with a record…so do the groups that volunteer at UMOM…all of these working together is so important….it’s how I found a great job!
The life skills I learned at UMOM are that there is no time like the present. I am learning organizational skills and I have learned how to prepare for things. If my life was to get any better than what it was, I had to do something and I had to do it now.
My biggest success because of UMOM was finding employment. That has been my biggest barrier to getting back on my feet, getting in somewhere to at least get the chance to prove myself.
My child’s future is now more goal oriented. She now knows that you can mess up and everything just be gone so she has taken precautions for that not to happen, after she completes her junior year she will be going to South Carolina as a Cadet Private E-2 to train at boot camp in the United States Army…
Because of UMOM, my future is now able to be as bright as the Arizona sun. I am well on my way to being my definition of a success story. I say that because this program works if you work it but I am not finished, I still want more.
I have signed up for the follow up program and will continue to receive guidance from the counselors and the staff at UMOM. I am more than grateful that I utilized the services available at the shelter and grateful that there is such a program that actually helps those who really want the help. I am proud to be able to stand here today to say thank you all for your passion in helping me and those other families that need and accept the water that you provide us to drink.
The community support I received at UMOM means a new outlook on life for me and my children. It has truly humbled me and has given me the desire to help others. Again, and ongoing THANK YOU.
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