Quinn, mother of three, was a supervision aide at an elementary school and worked evenings at a laundry mat. She enjoyed working at the school and found her work impactful in children’s lives giving her a sense of giving back to her community. Quinn put her children first juggling two jobs to meet her children’s needs and to keep up with bills. When Quinn met David she began to get isolated from her family and was told by him to give up a job in order to spend more time together. Quinn began to see red flags and wanted to leave David, but he would say he would change and would shower her with gifts and affection. After a short period, David would revert back to his behavior and would threaten Quinn saying he would harm her and her children. Quinn was stuck in a cycle that just kept repeating with David, but would stay hoping things would get better. Quinn knew this wasn’t the life her children deserved and needed to protect her family. Quinn found the strength to get out when her friend shared about Human Options and gave her the hotline number.
Quinn and her children were accepted to Human Options’ transitional housing program. In the beginning Quinn was having a hard time not having a job, adjusting and transitioning to the program because she would constantly think about how she got to where she was, thinking about her time before meeting David when things were safe and stable. Quinn would breakdown crying and panicking while her children were in school, feeling lost and alone. Quinn expressed feeling overwhelmed in knowing her housing situation was only temporary and did not know if she could get back on her feet ever again. Working with the Human Options team, Quinn focused on taking one step at a time determined to get into a more secure, safe and stable situation. She developed a plan to focus on her mental health and wellbeing and get herself back on track. Quinn was starting to heal from the trauma and knew employment was her goal to start making an income. She was provided with a Job Fair flyer happening in the community one weekend. Quinn took the initiative to attend the job fair and was hired on the spot for Parks and Recreation through the city working with children. Since starting her position with the city, Quinn has been in a brighter mood and smiling more. She enjoys working with the children at her job and has a healthy work environment. With this job Quinn has been able to get back on her feet, taking one step forward at a time.
Quinn shared wanting to increase her income in order to apply for apartments near her work. Despite what happened in her life Quinn continued to keep going and pushing. She was able to increase her income and feels so empowered she was able to accomplish this by not giving up and utilizing the resources and support around her. Quinn is actively showing her children that through determination, being resourceful and not giving up, anything can be possible. She continues to work through her trauma and working towards a more permanent living situation.
“Thank you for sharing this opportunity to find a job. I have gone from earning $15/hr to $20/hr.” – Mother & Survivor
