FALL 2024 ISSUE - Flipbook - Page 98
A
Survivor’s
Story: C.M.
C.M. is a courageous survivor who
grew up as one of ten children,
with a mother struggling with
substance addiction. Tragically,
she was taken by her traïcker
from the Washington, D.C.
metro area to Florida, where
she endured two years of abuse
and sexual exploitation. Despite
escaping this life of torment and
returning to D.C., the emotional
scars of her abuse remained.
Like many traïckers, C.M.9s
abuser degraded and emotionally
manipulated her, convincing her
that her life was worthless and that
she could never achieve anything
without him. Upon her return,
C.M. sought support from local
human traïcking organizations.
While many were willing to help,
none had immediate housing
available4until she connected
with FAIR Girls.
When C.M. arrived at FAIR
Girls, she had just secured
employment but was uncertain
about her future. She lacked the
conodence and belief in herself
to pursue her dreams and have a
home of her own. The FAIR Girls
staf immediately began working
with C.M., providing her with a
safe place to heal and helping her
regain her conodence. Together,
they set the goal of onding
and equipping her for her own
apartment.
Vida Home Senior Housing
Manager, Tameika Jackson,
leveraged her relationship with
longstanding partner, House of
Ruth, which had recently secured
newly built apartment buildings
that were a perfect ot for C.M.
After just 45 days in the Vida
98
Home program, C.M. moved into
a beautifully furnished home.
She continues to work full-time
and is onally excited about her
future.
C.M. is now looking forward to
becoming a credentialed beauty
specialist
and
reconnecting
with her two small
children. Her journey
is a testament to
the resilience and
strength of survivors
and the importance
of
supportive
organizations
in
helping them rebuild
their lives.
Jackson believes
her
organization9s
survivors come out
stronger because once
they leave the Vida
Home, that9s not
the end of the line
for them. She and
other stafers remain
available to previous
clients whenever they
call back. They are
never told they are no
longer part of FAIR
Girls or that they
cannot be helped.
FAIR Girls continue
to help as needed even
if it is two, three, or
more years down the
road. Jackson adds,