Giving thanks for YOU
Kristi shares how your support changed her life!
Kristi grew up with a strong motivation to create the family and life she wanted. “I had children young,” she says, “and I worked hard to become a nurse’s assistant.”
Her brother had struggled with addiction for years. When he told Kristi it was the only thing keeping him calm, she decided she had to know what it felt like for herself. “I tried it and fell in love with it. And it was just rock bottom ever since.”
The addiction overtook her life rapidly. “I started forgetting to pay bills, and they just piled up.” It cost her more than just money. “My mother refused to let me stay in her house. She kept my six kids, but I couldn’t come back unless I changed.”
She planned to find a new living situation quickly, but her addiction was all she could think about. “A couple of days turned into nine years of homelessness,” she says. “I was spiritually broken, my life was in pieces and I was cut off from everyone I loved… I couldn’t even see my children on their birthdays.”
“They showed me love when I didn’t love myself and helped me start over.”
When a caseworker brought Kristi to the Mission, she had almost given up hope. “My biggest challenge was being able to forgive myself for the things I’d done wrong and how I’d hurt the people I love.”
From her first day at the Mission, and eventually as a member of the Gateway program, Kristi felt God’s healing that she hadn’t thought possible. “The environment and people here just emphasize real love and care, and everything they teach us helps structure our lives with Christ as the center.”
Through employment opportunities at the Mission – including working in the Annex – Kristi has rekindled her desire to build a full, joyful life for her family. “I want to get a nursing degree, and I want to own my own home. I’ve got grandkids now, and I want to see them play in my backyard.”
This fall, Kristi gives thanks for YOU and your incredible generosity. Your prayers and support have helped change her life. “The Mission showed me that there’s no greater love than the love that God has for us. They’ve opened my eyes and given me a second chance, by the grace of God.”
To read our 2024 Summer issue of A New Dawn, click here.
Help other people like Kristi…
Kristi’s story of hope and healing is inspiring. Our New Life Programs exist to help other men and women in the Coachella Valley find healing. Will you help provide this help to others?