Both Sherry and her husband are disabled. When her mother fell ill, Sherry and her family traveled back to Louisiana to take care of her. After her mother passed away, they returned to Arizona but had very little money and found themselves without a home. All seemed hopeless. Nevertheless, Sherry was determined to find a home for her family. Every morning she would bathe her son and drive him to school. No one knew he was living in a car with his parents.
She and her husband would come to St. Vincent de Paul to get sack lunches and then return with their son for dinner in the Family Dining Room. She was able to get disability income and sold her handmade crafts to supplement that income, saving as much as she could. Again, no one knew they were homeless, even at St. Vincent de Paul. (Sherry made sure she and her family were always clean and presentable.)
Then on November 6, a miracle happened. Sherry and her family were able to move into their new home—a 1 bedroom furnished apartment. Sherry finally opened up and told Danielle, Manager of St. Vincent de Paul’s dining rooms, that their family had been living in a car. Danielle helped them get household items as well as school clothing for their son for winter. Vincentians checked on them regularly and made sure they had food.
Looking back, Sherry said, “It was hard living in our car, but we made it day by day. Staying in the car at night was a hardship, but we knew where we could get a meal each day because of St. Vincent de Paul. We know it could have been much, much worse. Some people don’t know where their next meal is coming from or when they’ll receive another paycheck. But luckily, my son never experienced that. He was able to eat warm meals every day.”
As for her new home, she says, “It feels great getting into a home right before the holidays because now my son can really enjoy the holidays. I don’t have to say ‘Well, you’re not going to get presents or have a Christmas because we don’t have a house.’ It’s hard to tell a child that.”
It didn’t take long for Sherry to turn her hope into hope for others. She started volunteering in our Dream Center helping children with their homework, sorting clothing in our Special Ministries for the Homeless and even washed dishes in our kitchen.
“St. Vincent de Paul was there for me and I want to be there for someone else. You never know what a person is going through or what they need. If I can help in any way, I’m going to do what I can. I’m there for whomever I can help because I’ve been there and I know what it’s like.”
“I am grateful that St. Vincent de Paul was there for us when we were homeless. If they weren’t I don’t know what we would have done for food and clothing for my son. Being homeless was stressful, but with St. Vincent de Paul, it could have been so much worse. They were there for us. They gave me hope when I didn’t have hope.”
