I feel beautiful, radiant, worthy, and loved!
Before coming to Wheeler Mission, Anya had lost all hope. “I felt like I didn’t have anything left to give to society or myself…”
Anya’s childhood was a traumatic nightmare, under the control of her abusive father. It left her with deep pain and feelings of self-hate. “I was abused and neglected. I was starved. I was mistreated in about every way a child can be mistreated.”
Even when she escaped that terrible situation, the crippling pain followed her. “As an adult, my anxiety spiraled out of control. I experienced homelessness a few times too. Feeling so depressed, I started drinking just to get through the day. I’d lost all hope.”
Anya felt like the world had given up on her—and she was ready to give up on herself. Although she had sought help at another shelter, she was kicked out due to her mental health struggles. “I felt like a failure. I didn’t have anything left to give to society or myself,” she says.
“When I walked through the doors of Wheeler Mission, I felt like a weight had been lifted from me.”
At her lowest point, Anya considered taking her own life, desperate to be free of the emotional pain of her past and her depression about the future. Thankfully, a local mental health center intervened, providing the medication she needed and a life-changing referral to Wheeler Mission. “I thank God for leading me to Wheeler Mission and for everything I’ve learned here.”
As part of our Foundations Employed Program, Anya started to heal emotionally and address the root causes of her struggles with homelessness and addiction. She even started attending a local church and was eventually baptized!
In our program, Anya has also been working on her GED, applying and interviewing for jobs, and building healthy friendships with people she can trust. In the future, she looks forward to pursuing a college degree in healthcare to help others.
Anya is grateful for YOU and your incredible generosity. Your prayers and support have helped change her life. “I am thankful to Wheeler Mission for saving my life. They’ve turned it around, 180 degrees! I’ve started to feel beautiful, radiant, worthy, and loved!”
