MY STORY

Did you know the majority of people living in poverty are women? The rates of poverty are

higher for women than men. Also, did you know that 80% of people requesting DHS are victims

of DV? This causes depression, low self-esteem, health problems, stress and more. Know about

poverty and domestic violence first hand. The odds were stacked against me from the day I was

born. My mother was a drug addict and prostitute. I was born addicted to Heroin which caused

me to stay in the hospital 6 weeks after my birth to detox. As a toddler my mother would force

me to beg in front of the corner store for food and money. The food went mostly to her and the

money straight for her drug habit. Her boyfriend daughters would beat me and lock me in the

basement until my mother came home. When I was five my mother went to jail and my

grandmother took me in.

I always longed for acceptance and love. I felt I had no identity of my own. I was whoever

people wanted me to be. When I was 16, I gave birth to my first child. I felt the only future for me

was to live in the "hood" with no prospects for progress and success. This caused me to be in a

controlling, verbally and mentally abusive relationship for years. I didn't choose better until

someone thought enough of me to tell me I deserved better. Now today it is my job to pay it

forward by showing other women their worth.

This is the catalyst for WISE. Empowerment is the key to freedom from bondage. WISE seeks to

show women how to DE victimize themselves. We choose to either be victims or survivors. I

chose to be a survivor. I chose life, life didn't choose me. What that means is that we can either

go with the flow or change the flow of our lives. By helping us, you help many women see a

future of success, confidence, and break the chains of poverty. You can help these women have

poverty and domestic violence firsthand. The odds were stacked against me from the day I was

the tools and hope they need to survive.