Video: Nicole’s Resident Success Story
“Building number 1083 and apartment #102 to the majority are just some random numbers making up a random address, but to me and my children it’s safety, it’s tranquility, it’s familiar, it’s warmth, it’s cozy, it’s home. It’s our home.
“Thanks to the owners, to the developers, to the construction workers, to all pro management, to Karen, Lori and of course Homeword, my family dodged being left with nowhere to turn.
“My name is Nicole, and I am a single parent of three amazing school-aged children. My oldest is my 13-year-old son, Raymond. My middle child is my 11-year-old son, Lincoln. And my youngest, the baby of our family, is my six-year-old, Mila.
“I have always been a hardworking and productive citizen. I’ve always tried to help others where and when I could if I could. Being kind, grateful, charitable and always standing strong in my faith I feel will always be a blessing to either others or myself and loved ones. But today’s economy doesn’t look like it used to. It doesn’t help support a single parent. It’s a constant battle, and you always feel as though you are and will always be behind even though you work a full-time job or even two jobs, for that matter.
“I watched Junegrass be built over the years. I lived not too far from here, and my daily drive to work took me past here every single day. Low-income housing is not abundant here. I knew if I wanted to have a fighting chance to be able to provide adequately for my children without the lingering threat of homelessness I needed to look into the saving grace I drove past every day on my way to work.
“Before Junegrass, I never could make enough money for rent and our utilities. I never made enough to buy the children their school supplies, clothes and regular everyday things a family and household needs to live a happy comfortable life. Being financially stable was a far-off dream for me and children. That is, until my prayers had been answered.
“I was so lucky to be given the chance to talk and share my story of hardship, the kindness of someone who actually took the time to listen to me and explain the dire situation my children and I were in. Our lease was ending at our prior house, and I had no idea what we were going to do. I did not have the $2,000+ in savings which it seems to take to move into a house or an apartment in addition to not even being able to find anything I could afford. My kids and I were on our way to being homeless. That is no exaggeration. I was terrified. I felt I had failed my children. If Junegrass hadn’t come along when it did in that very moment, literally down to the very month my family’s lease was ending, I know my and my children’s lives would not be nearly as amazing as they are today. That is solely due to the wonderful and caring people, programs and companies that all had a hand in making Junegrass what it is today.
“Not only could I not believe my family was being given a chance to open this door of opportunity, but I also couldn’t believe how clean, bright, large and spacious our home is here at Junegrass Place! You don’t feel like you are living in an apartment at all, with the nine-foot ceilings! The kitchen appliances are amazing, and the drawers are even “soft-close” drawers. The kids couldn’t slam them shut even if they wanted to. The amount of thoughtfulness and integrity in the design and building of Junegrass Place shows in every square inch of the home.
“Because of Junegrass, my family lives a more fulfilling life. Because of Junegrass, I am able to be the amazing mother I have always yearned to be. Because of Junegrass I can be that rock, that provider for my children and my household. Because of Junegrass, my mental strength, my dignity my self-worth is at an all-time high.
“Junegrass Place allows my family to focus on the real things that truly matter in life, like making fun memories and having the ability to laugh and joke more freely because that dark, heavy weight of homelessness isn’t looming around every corner. Junegrass Place allows us to breathe a sigh of relief. We can now finally live and understand what it means to live life instead of being forced to live every second of every day in survival mode. We no longer miss out on being able to make memories, having a pair of shoes for P.E. class, having a warm coat for winter, buying a gift for each others’ birthdays and having the financial ability to have a Christmas.
“The ways in which Junegrass and its affiliates has changed our lives for the better is impossible to measure. The quality of our lives has improved by leaps and bounds. 1083 N. Meridian Rd., Apartment #102, may just have been a bunch of numbers and measurements on a blueprint and may read as just another address to the majority, but to me and my children it’s a home. It’s our home.”