Upon reflection, she knows she made some very ill-judged choices in her early life. But in a misdirected search for acceptance, she repeatedly took injudicious steps and reached a cycle of despair, only to find a way to escape and a path to self-awareness and well-being. Melissa is 33 years old, the mother of 9-year…
Read MoreFinally Felicia
When Felicia underwent gastric bypass surgery in 2006, little did she know that this procedure would produce the opposite result for which it was intended: instead of leading to improved health, it resulted in an addiction to opioids. When she could no longer get her hands on pain meds, she turned to meth, and from…
Read MoreShe is Risen
Resurrection, rebirth, renewal are all words we will hear a lot this week, but these are words that we live by, every day, at Saint John’s. When women and children arrive at our doors, the joy and exuberance that is life is missing from their eyes, from their faces, from their souls. They are broken,…
Read MoreStephanie’s Serendipity
As a single mother of three, living paycheck-to-paycheck was a way of life. Stephanie became the sole parent of her family in 2014, when her husband was sentenced to 27 years to life in prison for beating her. For years, the beatings had gone unreported, as he repeatedly threatened to kill her and their son…
Read MoreSandy’s Salvation
What kind of mother uses while she’s pregnant? What kind of mother would continue to use, knowing she had four babies already removed from her care by “the system?” Looking back at a life I can no longer fathom, I am forever grateful for the Real Change I have finally been able to achieve. At…
Read MoreSilver Belle
Silver had it all – marriage, family, a career, a home. An avid learner with a passion to explore, school and classes have always been a part of her life. After earning her high school diploma, she went right to work, but always fit a class or two into her life. “I like to keep…
Read MoreDawn Rising
“People ain’t perfect. We all have these flaws and we all have these hiccups.” Dawn originally entered Saint John’s ten years ago. She went through the program simply to get done with it. She admits, “I was doing what I was told to do. I wasn’t receiving what I was supposed to be receiving, I…
Read MoreUnstoppable Maria
Maria walks into Saint John’s in scrubs fresh off a break from her job at UC Davis Medical Center. She has a bright, infectious smile and truly seems to be the happiest person in the world which is simply amazing as she was homeless before finding Saint John’s Program for Real Change. “I love my…
Read More1 Picture/1000 Words
“When I paint, I listen to worship music, and I let God lead,” says Mandy. Just six weeks into the program, Mandy W. has taken quickly to the Friday afternoon Art Therapy class offered at Saint John’s, despite nary having lifted a paint brush.
Read MoreHelping Children Succeed
Our average client is 34 years old and has two children, 47% of whom arrive at our doors suffering from depression and anxiety as a result of their homelessness. Many of these children have been raised in an environment rife with drugs, alcohol and domestic violence, and have endured uninhabitable living conditions, with no awareness…
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