CLEVELAND — The first night after she surrendered her house to foreclosure, Sheri West endured the darkness in her Hyundai sedan. She parked in her old driveway, with her flower-print dresses and hats piled in boxes on the back seat, and three cherished houseplants on the floor. She used her backyard as a restroom.

Shortly after they were married, Priscilla and her husband came to the United States as refugees to escape their violent war-torn country. After a few years of marriage, Priscilla’s own household became a war zone as her husband became increasingly abusive, both verbally and physically. A few months after their second child was born, Priscilla took her children and fled to a safehouse, only to return home a few weeks later because her daughter missed her dad. The violence subsided for awhile but then re-emerged. Read more.

Anisa arrived at the Family HomeStead office with 3 kids and 5 suitcases. The kids, all boys, ranging in age from 6-18, sat quietly in the lobby while their mother met with a case manager. The kids did not speak a word of English, but their mother spoke very well, in fact, she spoke 8 languages. Anisa and the kids were recent arrivals to the U.S., coming as refugees from a war-torn country. When they came to Family Homestead they had recently been evicted from their rental after a refugee organization could no longer pay the monthly rent they had covered for 8 months. In Africa, Anisa had been a secretary and language tutor, but she had been unable to work since coming to the U.S. because her youngest son suffered with severe health problems and could not attend school on a regular basis. Read more.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. — In the small trailer her family rented over the summer, 9-year-old Charity Crowell picked out the green and purple outfit she would wear on the first day of school. She vowed to try harder and bring her grades up from the C’s she got last spring — a dismal semester when her parents lost their jobs and car and the family was evicted and migrated through friends’ houses and a motel.

Homeless children are helped most by efforts which support their parents in taking control of, and responsibility for, family life. Family HomeStead’s emphasis on the strength, integrity, and independence of the families we house serves to remove obstacles and enhance their motivation to succeed. But today the environment facing low-income families is bleak, and that makes our job more difficult.

The Carson family came into emergency housing after being evicted from their rental when Ellen lost her job. Even with a steady income, Ellen had found it difficult and expensive to provide adequate housing for herself and her five children, ages 4-13. Ellen had never been homeless before and it had clearly taken a toll on her. She and her children had been staying in shelters, with family and in motels through agency motel vouchers. The children’s school attendance was spotty as they moved from day to day. Read more.

story_abbottThomas Abbott had never been homeless before when he came to Family HomeStead in the summer of 2002. He had been scrambling, working two part-time seasonal jobs, but he could still not produce the $750 he needed for rent each month. Even though he had had full custody of his three sons for over two years, child support was still being garnished from his paychecks, making it hard to make ends meet. The family was evicted from their rental and was staying with different friends and relatives. Read more.

Frank Holloway thought he was living “the American Dream.” He and his wife, Debra, both had good jobs as apprentice plumbers, each making $30-$40 thousand a year. They bought a new house in a nice neighborhood where their four children could play safely and go to good schools. And, then, as happens with many dreamers, the nightmare began. Read more.