Victory Programs

Monique's Story

monique In May of 2005, a police wagon pulled up outside Women’s Hope. There was no bed available, and the police were going to release Monique onto the sidewalk. She fought to go back to jail because she knew that if they released her, she would wind up on the street again and go straight back onto drugs. The staff at Women’s Hope understood; they took her in and made up a temporary bed for her until a full one became available. They understood because they had seen it happen before. They weren’t going to let it happen to Monique.

Monique’s life on the street had been demanding both physically and emotionally. She had been homeless for the past eight years. She was tired of living on Blue Hill Avenue and sleeping in stolen cars: of washing in McDonald’s and drying her wet clothes on the hoods of cars; of selling her body and her soul; and of being moved along by the people whose doorsteps she slept on. “I was humiliating to them and to myself.”

Monique stayed in the intensive program at Women’s Hope for 45 days, then she moved to the Shepherd House program: a less intensive program, designed for women who have completed a short-term residential program but are not ready to return to the community. At Shepherd House, Monique worked on a lot of issues. She felt the need to use every day. She stole to meet her material needs. She credits her counselor for getting her through this time. The counselor helped her focus on her goals- made her think about what she wanted for herself and her future, and what she needed to do to get there.

Monique’s goals included getting visitation rights to see her daughter. She has three children, in separate foster homes, and she wants them to know one another. She says, “before, what I wanted from my relationships with my kids was all about me. Now it’s about what is best for my family. I am signing guardianship of my middle child to her foster mother. I want her to decide for herself the relationship she has with me.”

Monique’s transition has not been smooth sailing. On Valentine’s Day 2006 she relapsed. She was embarrassed and humiliated. Victory Programs worked with her to address the cause of her relapse, and treated the event as a signal that she needed a different treatment approach. Until she was stable again, she moved back into the more intense program at Women’s Hope. Counselors helped her focus on her reasons for relapse, and her own motivation. DSS didn’t penalize her: with the help of her counselor, they came to appreciate her honesty.

For now, Monique is working on her sobriety and making plans for her future. “My plans for the future are to proceed with my housing search. My past puts a damper on this but I will succeed. If my kids are not in my custody they will be in my life and in each others’ lives. I want to get my drivers’ license back. In the meantime, I’m taking lots of courses, gaining education and experience, so that when I do get my license back I am ready to take advantage of it. My goal is to live and earn, not to live and take.”