August 21st, 2019
When Laquita got pregnant with her third child last year, she was unable to continue to work an adequate number of hours to support her family. This led to missed car payments and eventually the loss of her car and home. It was at this time when Laquita received recommendations to go to Our House, and she still remembers the Intake Clerk telling her they had three beds available – enough for her whole family. Laquita says what really drew her to Our House was the mention of a daycare, and her three children were enrolled in Little Learners by the end of the first week of her arrival, allowing her to go to work full-time at TeleTech in Sherwood. “My kids loved being in the Shelter and Little Learners; that was the first time they really got to interact with other kids,” Laquita says.
While at Our House, Laquita was always impressed by the resources available to her. “My work in Sherwood is far to have to ride the bus that whole way, but I was able to get free bus passes in the Career Center. After that, I started asking lots of questions about what else was available to me.” In fact, without Our House, Laquita believes she would still be transitioning from shelter to shelter, because she would have never know about the community programs and resources available to someone in her situation. “Our House got me the resources to get back on my feet,” Laquita says. “Everyone is so kind and willing to help or figure it out with me. Now, if I see another woman in a similar situation to me, I recommend them to go to Our House.”
Laquita is now living in her own apartment through Family Promise and is still involved in Our House through the CAFSI program. Working with her case manager, Laquita was able to get her driver’s license reinstated and shortly after that received the amazing news that she would be the recipient of a donated van through The One, Inc. and the work of their president, Aaron Reddin. With The One and the additional support of various generous donors, Laquita’s new van was repaired and the remaining funds were used to pay her vehicle registration, purchase car seats, and pay 5 months of car insurance premiums. Removing the burden of having to ride the bus to work and to pick up her children has tremendously helped Laquita’s stability at her job and will help ensure success for the whole Handy family!