Alone. On her own. With no one to talk to – much less to guide her – Kie’Arra found herself homeless at age 15, after enduring a traumatic childhood. 

“When I was 6 or 7, my mom was into drugs pretty heavily,” she recalls. “And my dad just really stood there and watched.”

After officials found Kie’arra’s environment unsafe for the little girl and her sisters, they were placed in the custody of a greatgrandmother. But as Kie’Arra grew older, she longed to know her mother and to have her be part of her life.

The two were reunited, and Kie’Arra was ecstatic when her mom invited her to share her home. But their relationship turned sour and the arrangement fell apart.

The two were reunited, and Kie’Arra was ecstatic when her mom invited her to share her home. But their relationship turned sour and the arrangement fell apart.

“We had a huge argument and she put me out,” Kie’Arra says.

With nowhere to go, she began sleeping under bridges or in strangers’ homes – anywhere she could find to lay her head. She dropped out of school and adopted a toxic lifestyle she believed was necessary to survive. Her actions diminished her self-esteem and her hope of finding a path forward. Weary, disheartened and feeling there was nowhere she belonged, she turned to drugs to ease her growing despair.

“It was the only way I could think of to soothe my pain,” she says. “It became my best friend.”

By the time she was 20, she’d reached rock bottom. Her dangerous and destructive habits were threatening her life. She’d gone days without eating or bathing. She could feel her body shutting down. “I knew I needed help – I really needed help,” she says. “So I asked somebody for $1.75, and they gave it to me.”

It was bus fare to City Rescue Mission. Kie’Arra had been through our doors before: for emergency food and shelter at our New Life Inn. At that point, however, she wasn’t yet ready to make the commitment to turn her life around. But this time was different.

“When I came back, I felt more at peace… more calm… like I was in a place where I belonged.”

Now part of our LifeBuilders Residential Recovery Program, she embraces the compassion of our counselors and others she feels truly care about her. “If I need someone to talk to about my past, they listen to what I have to say – I’ve never had that before.”

And through the teachings of our grace-oriented coursework, she’s releasing false beliefs as she learns about God’s faithfulness and love. “Before, I felt like God had abandoned me… like I deserved what I got. Now with Him in my life, I feel I have a place on this earth.”

“The most important thing I’ve learned is that in order for me to sustain a happy life, and to remain healthy, I have to remain in Christ and God’s Word.”

With her new sense of self-esteem and encouragement from staff and mentors, Kie’Arra is earning her GED. Then she plans to work as a beautician while she trains to become a phlebotomist. Today, with virtually her whole life ahead of her, she’s grateful to friends like you for her new beginning…

“Before I came to the Mission I was lost. I was hopeless and I didn’t have a sense of belonging. Now I’m renewed. I feel I belong. I see myself as a good person and I know I’m worthwhile.”

To read the entire April Newsletter, click here.