Safe Families Oklahoma had the wonderful opportunity to serve a young mother and her one-year-old daughter. This sweet mom connected with us through a transitional living program for young adults. Motivated and driven to make a life better for her and her daughter; she had made plans to one day go to nursing school, purchase a car, and to save up for a deposit on her very own apartment. However, despite strong motivation, she struggled to find the energy, time, and space to overcome challenges and start moving in the right direction.
The past year had been incredibly challenging. Her daughter was born prematurely and required critical care for an extended period and the baby’s father was not a safe person. Realizing she needed to keep her daughter safe, she made the difficult decision to leave. Emotionally and physically drained, she found herself alone and responsible for raising her daughter, yet remained determined to build a better life for both of them.
It was then that the Safe Families volunteers stepped in to host her one-year-old daughter, while Mom focused on getting on her feet. With her little girl being hosted by a Safe Family; she was able to get a part-time job as a substitute teacher, start nursing school, purchase a used car, and attend therapy to begin a journey toward healing past trauma and grief. The mom also shared with us how she has rediscovered how much she loved school and excelled at it. She aspires to one day become a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) nurse, driven by her own experiences with her daughter born prematurely.
Beyond her personal achievements, the hosting experience fostered strong bonds between this mom and her Safe Families volunteer Circle of Support (COS). They have become her “extended family” and plan to continue to walk alongside of her as she continue to follow her dreams and make the best life for her family! There is incredible power in volunteers from the local church stepping up to empower moms like her to have the time, space, and support they need to make a positive impact on their family. Safe Family volunteer efforts are changing generations!