Imagine spending your childhood being moved around, jumping from one school to the next and, when you are beginning high school, both of your parents become homeless. At the age of fifteen, this was the reality for Gina Alemãn.  She was moved again, but this time she was separated from her siblings and placed into a foster home.  As you can envision, these are stressful circumstances.  Now add trying to care for an infant.

Gina was enrolled at the Florence Crittenton School for her freshman and sophomore years, and then found herself being moved around again, this time within the foster care system. The constant change of schools was too much for her to handle so instead she began work on completing her GED.

After spending two years in the foster care system, Gina qualified for the federal Family Unification Program (FUP) which provided her with housing assistance for six months.  It was only upon entering our Housing Services program that the cycle of instability ended, allowing Gina an opportunity to develop the skills needed for self-sufficiency.

When Gina entered our program she was working at AmeriCorps, assisting underprivileged youth by placing them into transitional housing, which helped her to understand the system and the difficulties surrounding qualification.  Her director suggested Parent Pathways and within two weeks her intake process was completed.  We placed her into an apartment within days of her FUP assistance expiring.

Fortunately for Gina, her new home was only blocks away from her job and the school bus stop was just steps out the door.  Parent Pathways also provided bus passes, assistance with food and other daily necessities.  Gina said, “I am most thankful for Parent Pathways providing my children with gifts for Christmas and birthdays.” Every child deserves a reason to celebrate during the holidays; because of our great volunteers and donors, Gina and her boys had this opportunity.

Gina is also thankful for the relationships and the life-long friendships she has built with other clients through our Life Skills classes.  She was also referred to a counselor and a tutor to whom she credits her success in the math section of the GED tests, which she finally completed and gained certification. 

Gina was lucky in a way many of our other clients are not.  She came into our Housing Services with very little debt and credit problems.  She mentioned how helpful the classes on credit and identity theft were for her future planning, as well as how much she enjoyed the driving safety class. 

About a week before our assistance for Gina would conclude, she applied to be a leasing agent and was offered the position immediately.  Not only did Gina receive the job, which completely supports her and her family financially including health benefits, but she also moved onto the property and receives a discounted rent.

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