Tina and Alianna’s Story

Tina was a young mother when she lost her job twelve days before Christmas. Like many people in our community, she had only a thin margin of savings to fall back on to support herself and her two-year-old daughter, Alianna. Due to the stress of being a single mother faced with the prospect of losing her home, Tina felt completely overwhelmed. She searched for another job, but when she had no luck, hopelessness set in. She became deeply depressed. She and Alianna lost their apartment when she became unable to pay the rent.

A Place to Turn for Hope

Tina and Alianna moved into the Eugene Mission for a month while they awaited a spot in ShelterCare’s Family Housing Program. During this time it was nearly impossible for Tina to look for work because she had no means of child care for her daughter. Once she and Alianna arrived at ShelterCare, they received housing, food, clothing, budgeting assistance, and a children’s program for Alianna. What Tina found to be the most beneficial was the program’s counseling services. She began to work through issues from her childhood that stood in the way of long-term stability for herself and her daughter.

During her stay in shelter, Tina was able to save $250. With a little financial help from ShelterCare, Tina and Alianna moved into a shared, low-income apartment. They continued to work with ShelterCare through the transitional program that provides post-shelter support to families to ensure they remain in stable housing. A month later, Tina found a new job that gave her a good salary, benefits and paid time off. She has now been working at this same job for a year and a half, and recently received a generous raise.

The Tools for Success

Today, Tina and Alianna are doing very well. Just last month, they were able to move into a larger apartment of their own. Tina is looking forward to being able to own a house someday. On Alianna’s recent 4 th birthday, Tina was thrilled to be able to throw a birthday party for her daughter – something she was once far from able to do.

Tina feels very lucky to have a strong support and voice of reason in her ShelterCare case manager, Molly. Whenever she’s having trouble with her boss or is unsure about how to handle a situation, Molly is there to help her strategize and talk things out. When asked how she thought she would manage when she was no longer able to work with Molly, Tina smiled and said, “We’ll be OK. Now I believe in myself, now I know how to use the tools to make sure I always provide for my daughter’s safety and well-being. No matter what, I will make sure we are never again in that place of uncertainty and chaos.”