“There’s no way to be a perfect mother and a million ways to be a good one.” - Jill Churchill
When Andrea first came to Casa Teresa, she felt that she didn’t know how to lead a “normal” life. She couldn’t imagine providing her daughters with the kind of life she wanted for them—a life that had always seemed out of reach to Andrea herself. Her parents, like other members of the extended family, battled with addiction. Andrea began using drugs at fifteen, became pregnant at sixteen, and dropped out of high school shortly after that. Lacking role models and support, the next decade of Andrea’s life was marked by periods of drug use, alcohol abuse, a second child, solicitation, and imprisonment. She was told that she would never regain custody of her children and would likely spend her life in and out of jail. Even friends and family began to discourage her. Fortunately, her life was about to take an important turn. Andrea discovered that she was pregnant with her third child, and a family member told her about Casa Teresa. She reluctantly met with one of our case managers. At that stage of her journey, Andrea was unsure of everything in her life and didn’t fully trust the Casa Teresa staff. Still, she entered the program, and after a difficult first month of attending meetings and classes, she realized that staff and residents were truly there to help her. From that point onward, Andrea worked the program. She gained her sobriety, went back to school, and continued her efforts to earn custody of her older children. In the 12 months she has spent at Casa Teresa, Andrea gave birth to her third daughter, Brooklynn; achieved her High School Equivalency; secured a well-paying job; and by participating in our Reunification Program, was ultimately able to gain custody of her middle child, Erin, now 3 years old. She is repairing the relationship with her older daughter, Alazia, who lives out of state. Andrea overcomes the distance by talking on the phone to Alazia frequently and visiting with her during the summer. In her daily life with Erin and Brooklyn, she courageously faces the same challenges that most mothers face, especially single mothers: balancing work and running a household, managing finances, being a role model, teaching her children to share, keeping them safe, and ensuring that they feel loved. She also gets to experience those rewarding moments that make all the challenges worthwhile, like seeing Erin and Brooklyn play, knowing that they love her, and being able to tell them that she loves them every day. Even after experience all the help and support from Casa Teresa staff during these difficult processes, Andrea was still constantly surprised to see how much they cared about her and wanted to invest in her. When she graduated with her Equivalency, she didn’t expect anyone she knew to attend the ceremony. “All the staff came,” she said. “They were there for me. And that’s what I consider my family.”
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