Finding a Place of Peace

Drugs and divorce left Cheryl on the streets, but she found hope and healing here

Despite being a victim of domestic violence, Cheryl had hoped things would improve in her marriage. “I thought he would get some help,” she says.

But he never did. When Cheryl’s husband threated her life, he was arrested, and a divorce ensued. She was suddenly alone, depressed and struggling to pay rent. She leased out a room to try to pay expenses, but her tenant “turned my home into a crack house. People came from everywhere, 24/7, to get drugs and party.”

Cheryl, a former drug user, started using again to deal with all the chaos and pain in her life. “I just needed something to try and make myself feel better,” she says.

As a drug user unable to pay rent, Cheryl was soon evicted. She was on the streets for a while, and found herself unable to cope: “I was at my wits’ end.” She needed a place of peace … and she found it at Haven of Rest.

That was two years ago. She vividly remembers the day she arrived, telling her story to a case manager. “It was embarrassing to explain my situation and how far down the wrong road I had gone,” Cheryl says. “But she had sympathy.” Cheryl’s road to new life had begun.

Staff referred her to a place where she could find the urgent mental and physical care she needed. A week later, she returned to Haven of Rest where, thanks to friends like you, staff soon found transitional housing for Cheryl. She started working again. She remained sober. She enrolled in “Becoming,” our discipleship program for women.

“It was awesome,” she says. “It was everything I’d been praying for.”

Months later, back on her feet, Cheryl struck out on her own again. But she soon realized she missed the opportunity for spiritual growth at the Mission.

So, earlier this year, she returned: “I just needed to be closer to God and learn more about His ways.”

Cheryl says it’s the best decision she’s ever made. She has a job and is saving up for an apartment, but she’s most excited about her Christian walk.

“I’ve been looking to get more spiritual and knowledgeable about what God can do,” she says. “There’s Bible studies here in the morning and before dinner. God is everywhere I look.

“Through Haven of Rest, I’ve been put back on track.”

“I want to help other people, just like they’ve helped me. I’m just building my sense of grace and mercy for others, because I have it so well here.”

She is particularly grateful for supporters like you. “You saved my life,” Cheryl says, choking up. “Through Haven of Rest, I’ve been put back on track and I’m headed straight where I want to go.

“I’ve changed. I’m a new person.”

Thank you for your vital role in helping women like Cheryl find new life!