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Advancing the common good by focusing on the building blocks to a better life: education, income and health.
I want to share a story about someone. How often do you pass someone on the street or at a corner who appears homeless and then if you are like me, you pause to ask yourself… what is his story? Or her story? Is he a veteran? on drugs?
Today I want to tell you about Nealia. Nealia recently shared her personal story in a letter with Metro United Way and I am going to read some excerpts of her letter. Here is her story, in her words...
"I attended high school in Kentucky and to the outsiders looking in, my high school life was grand. I was the Junior Class Vice President, on our student council and was the Senior Basketball Homecoming Queen. I received a total of 5 scholarships to attend college! What no one could see was what was on the inside—as a young child, I suffered abuse and neglect from family members. I went to college and during college I began to hear voices, I was nervous, paranoid and scared of everything. Two friends noticed I was depressed and getting worse. That summer, my grandparents noticed my odd behavior and I was then hospitalized for 2 ½ months. I started to understand my mental disorder and was given medication that allowed me to return to college and graduate.
After college, I became involved in an abusive relationship where I was denied sleep and physically abused. I was really at the end of my rope and left my job and fled my home. In 8 years I went from being the Homecoming Queen to being homeless. I arrived in Louisville with nothing more than a few clothes and my car. I ate meals at a homeless shelter while working at a mall. I was alone. I was afraid and I had only a minimal income. The first thing that had to go was filling my prescriptions. Soon, I was ill again, and I sat hopeless on a bench day after day until I finally begged a worker at a shelter to refer me to a hospital. I knew it was the only way I could reach out of the darkness and get back on my medications.
Another 2 ½ month hospital stay... BUT this time I was referred to Bridgehaven – a United Way agency. Even though I had no money and no way to pay for services, Bridgehaven opened their door to me. I never missed a day. I found a place where I had peers who became my friends, I found hope to create a meaningful life. With support from Bridgehaven, I have become involved in church, gone back to work, and I live now in an apartment on my own. In 2006 I went back to school to become certified as a Peer Support Specialist. In 2008, I became an employee at Bridgehaven – the place that gave me my life back. I love my job and Bridgehaven makes a difference in saving lives, like mine, in our community. It feels so good being part of it now. And you are a part of it too because the United Way funding is what allows them to provide the services I needed when I could not afford to pay. No place else would do that. It is the most indescribable feeling being able to give back to the place that helped give me back my life.
Thank you.
Nealia H."
Nealia’s story is a perfect example of how United Way with your support improves lives and creates opportunities for a brighter tomorrow. It is a story that shows how together we can advance the common good by focusing on the building blocks for a good life—health, education and income. Today, Nealia is contributing to society, living on her own, and she is giving back to the community by helping others.
Contact Information
United Way of Kentucky
P.O. Box 4653
Louisville, KY 40204
Phone: 502.589.6897
Fax: 502.589.0057
Email: uwky@uwky.org
Web: www.uwky.org
