Journey To Freedom

Really it’s not the economy I am blaming completely. My ex husband lost his job in November due to cutbacks. Since the end of December he has made one payment of $50.

I had a job as a consultant so I was self employed. That job ended in March. I am not upset about it because it was really a trial run for me.

Last October my kids and I got out of public housing after being there for 2 1/2 years. December we ended Food Stamps. Everything seemed fine since I returned to school for the Spring Semester thinking by February or March at the latest, my ex husband would be working.

Here it is nearly June and my kids have received one mere payment of $50 back in March.

The Child Support Office told me that once my ex husband got three months behind our case would be put on the court docket. Here it is nearly seven months and nothing has been done.

I have called and visited the Child Support office at least once a month getting told different stories.

Today I go in with my best friends to only find out that the last call I made with information about my ex husbands new job had not been entered into the computer. So, at my request they logged in that I have had to apply for emergency assistance to keep from being homeless. Hopefully there will be a court date very soon. I have a lot to say to the judge.

It’s frustrating because summer has just begun for my oldest two children. The only childcare I can afford is the Boys & Girls Club and they do not open up until 10 AM and close at 4:30. My oldest son has behavior problems yet he does okay at the location he is at because they are willing to be patient and work with him. However, when he goes to the main unit which will happen some this summer, he gets in trouble thus, he gets suspended for three days.

I am selling what I can on Ebay thanks to family and friends. I am able to pay my smaller bills for the time. It’s my rent I am more concerned about.

I had friends tell me a while back to not depend on child support. I should treat it as supplemental.

Truthfully, if my kids were in school I would be able to more freely find a job worth doing.

My kids are too young to be left at home for several hours while I work.

So for the time being I am selling things on Ebay.

I have had to put my business on hold temporarily until I can get on my feet again.

Currently my ex husband owes $2117.06 in arrearage. It may not seem like a lot but it is to me and my children.

My oldest son had to deal with small shoes for at least a month to six weeks that left him with blisters and raw skin on the top of his feet and toes. I finally had enough and made my ex get him some new shoes. I knew he had just gotten his tax rebate. He ended up getting his shoes along with a haircut plus got our daughter some croc like shoes.

What does it take for Child Support to do anything? I told them three weeks ago I was facing eviction because I cannot pay my rent and my bills are behind. Now that is a real possibility. I am working with my landlord but I know he has to have money coming in.
So while I am working to make money here and there I am also looking for a cheaper place to live. I have seriously considered finding a one bedroom apartment. That would leave us seriously cramped though it is a place to stay.

With my youngest son I still get child support from his dad. It’s only $400 a month but that is at least paying my smaller bills and getting me a little gas.

I do know things will get better eventually. I am just thinking about today and my kids. I want to make sure I am always providing for them.

I hope the next time I blog about Child Support will be a good report.

What do all three have in common? Me! I am a Market America Distributor, I own the website www.empowering-solutions.net and I am also one of the GoNow Girls!

My best friend Janice and I got the name GoNow Girls from our team leader, Mary Susan Rehrer several weeks ago. Janice and I have been working together as a team talking to others about our business. When we reported to Mary Susan how things were going she would call us the GoNow Girls.

That’s exactly what we are. We GoNow and that is the way it is going to be for quite sometime. Janice and I also recently joined the Bradley/Cleveland Chamber of Commerce. Janice and her husband Mike have been Chamber members before when they owned a coffee shop several years ago so they knew the benefits of being Chamber members.

I am also working on building traffic to my newest website Empowering-Solutions (www.empowering-solutions.net). I enjoy uplifiting, empowering, motivating others. It is a great feeling when I can get people to laugh, smile, feel productive. My website has been supported by Mike Strawbridge, my former life coach turned sponsor and supporter.

Mike and Janice actually are my Market America Sponsors. I attended the majority of the first and second looks, product shows, etc before committing to becoming a distributor with Market America. I asked a load of questions to ease my concerns. I depended heavily on Mike’s overall opinion of Market America.

This is a huge commitment for me as I am a single mom with three children to take care of.

At the last training I realized that there are so many Market America Distributors like me who have conquered the beast and rose to the top. The more I get to know other MA distributors the more confident I get.

I had been burned by other opportunities so I was very hesitant to even get into this. I wanted proof it worked. But what really kept me attracted to MA is that even if I wasn’t activated yet, I could still make money (which I do).

I also tried the products, particularly Isotonix OPC-3 for my allergies. I recommend OPC-3 to everyone I know who has allergies. Most still look at me like I am some nut but as I learned recently J.R. Ridinger is the top nut!

I also got my family into using the products which they are happy with and I continue to order products for them!

I believe in the products and I believe in the business.

If you are interested in learning more about Market America and/or the products visit my web portal: http://www.marketamerica.com/journeytofreedom

Saturday, May 17, 2008 I had a very inspiring day. I traveled with my best friends and sponsors to Franklin, TN just outside of Nashville for a local training. Tom Holden from Houston, Texas was the speaker for the event.

Some of the people there with most or all of them being Market America distributors, were recognized for their hard work to become activated, teach others the business and expand their business. When they were interviewed by David Whited who is one of the local coordinators, majority of them mentioned how they have achieved a lot when it comes to personal development.

They have broken out of their shells to become better, more confident people. That is where I intend to be within a year.

I have never in my life felt so confident about a company that offers an opportunity such as Market America.

I’ve been there and done that time and time again. I have been burned by other opportunities to stay at home. Some others that I am familiar with like most people are overly saturated. I have a team leader who has excelled at this business for 13 years now.

Today, Wednesday, May 21st, 2008 was another day of personal development. I had the opportunity to observe my team leader speak with a professional business person from a local broadcasting company that represents several local radio stations.

Our hope and dream is to spread the word about Market America and show others how they too can become financially free, build on personal development and spend more time with their families.

I am a single mom with three kids so this business has to work for me. I would not have invested so much time and effort into this business had I not believed in it like I do. I have the support of my friends, many of whom are from the church I attend.

I am recommending this business opportunity to other people especially moms who want to find a legitimate business opportunity that will empower them to make positive changes in their life that will positively affect their family and friends as well.

Hopefully you have gotten your tax rebate by now or will very soon. I received mine the exact date I was told I would receive it. I was slightly disappointed because I really thought since they sped up the process by a few days I would get mine a few days earlier.

Not.

The minute I received mine it was gone. Actually it was gone all ready. I just recently lost my job so this check came in time to help contribute to paying bills and rent for at least one more month.

At the moment I’m not receiving child support for my oldest two and thanks to the lovely government and child support services, I will haven’t and will not be receiving any arrearage from the IRS tax rebate unless they do another one next year.

I read a few weeks ago how analysts are saying too little too late regarding the rebates. At first I didn’t believe that statement. As I thought about it though, they are in some ways right.

Christmas time or January would have been the ideal time to boost the economy with these checks. Since then many people have had to foreclose on their homes, downsize, file bankruptcy, etc.

Today I read that the IRS messed up by sending rebates to the wrong accounts as well as forgetting to give as many as 350,000 households the child rebate!

I imagine those families are frustrated. Many of us are dependent on this boost to help pay bills and possibly buy necessary items for ourselves or our homes.

For now I am just thankful I even got a rebate. It has helped me and my children stay in this apartment for at least one more month.

Yep, that’s right. I am allergic to Cantaloupe and it’s really bad. My allergist told me 10 years ago to stay away from Cantaloupe at all costs.

Even her staff was dumbfounded by this unusual allergy.

Cats and Cantaloupe are by far my worst allergies. I am allergic to grass, trees, among many other things. I jokingly tell people I am allergic to everything but myself.

Actually, I have had allergies since I was a toddler. They just were not officially diagnosed until I was 21 in 1998.

I was told then it was highly recommended if I wanted to live any kind of normal life to begin taking allergy shots. I have been taking allergy medications both prescription and over the counter for much of my life.

I didn’t want a life that depended on allergy shots so I kept taking medication like Zyrtec. It was okay but as usual it made me drowsy. I was like a zombie!

I quit taking the stuff. Then I was introducted to Singulair. I thought it was supposed to help me with my Asthma, which it did. However, I found out later it also helps with allergies. I liked the medication but I didn’t have a regular doctor or the money to spend on medication.

After 30 years of suffering with allergies I have finally found something I am very happy with. In fact, I highly recommend it to people who have allergies.

Two months ago a friend of mine who is a registered nurse told me about a supplement (all natural) called OPC-3 by ISOTONIX. It’s not a pill nor does it have side affects. All you do is take a capful or two (depending on how bad allergies are) and mix them either with water or your favorite morning or evening drink. Let the fizz quit then drink down.

Within a few days you will notice a difference in how you are feeling.

When you ingest a typical pill or tablet, it takes a half an hour to four hours to digest depending on how much you have eaten. With ISOTONIX it takes just minutes to be digested. This maximizes the absorption of the nutrients and there is no gastrointestinal discomfort.

So when I take my OPC-3 in the mornings, within a half an hour I am feeling really good.

My complexion has cleared up after dealing with acne for almost a year (like I was a teenager again).

I also feel physically healthy which I haven’t felt in sometime.

To learn more about OPC-3 visit my website portal: http://www.marketamerica.com/journeytofreedom

30 years ago I was diagnosed with Asthma. I was barely one year old when I was rushed to the hospital because of an Asthma attack. I vaguely remember being placed in an oxygen tent. My mom tells me I had an IV in my foot!

When my parents divorced a couple of years later, there was no medical insurance. I remember countless times having Asthma attacks. My dad went to a health food store and purchased bee pollen. I’m not sure what that was supposed to accomplish but it didn’t help immediately with my inability to breathe.

In the sixth grade I fell ill with severe acute bronchitis. I recall getting a nasy penicillin shot in my hip and passing out at the doctors office. I was admitted to the hospital and stayed there for eight days. That was the first time I remember having breathing treatments.

As a teenager my Asthma disappeared for a few years until I moved back to Tennessee to live with my mom and step dad. I am guessing because the climate was wet, cold and damp it aggitated my Asthma while Texas is at times hot, humid and or dry.

At age 18 I had the worst Asthma attack in my life. In fact, I thought I was going to die. My heart was racing faster than it had ever done.

The next time I had a bad Asthma attack I was just shy of my 21st birthday. I had just given birth to my first child a few weeks before.

One day I was eating out with my family when I had a bad allergic reaction to some fruit I was eating. I decided then that it was time to see an Asthma & Allergy specialist.

I went to Asthma, Immunology and Associates in Chattanooga, Tennessee. My Asthma was so bad the doctor would not do the standard tests they have new patients do. Breathing into a spirometer was a huge challenge for me. It took three times for them to get a good reading. By then I was dizzy and exhausted.

I finally was able to get my Asthma under control, at least for awhile.

There were times in my life though, that I was angry I had Asthma. I resented the fact I couldn’t breathe and I had to depend on fast acting inhalors, particularly Albuterol. I wanted a normal life!

In December 2006 my life came crashing down. I had been ill for a little while with what I thought was a case of the Flu and possibly bronchitis. I had horrible chills, aches and a fever. I was breathing ok. A friend of mine had given me Spiriva and an albuterol inhalor so I was doing fine as well as breathing goes.

I was taking Theraflu which helped me for short times during the day.

I’m a single mom to three kids so I had to take care of them!

Then on a Saturday, my daughter woke up sick with a very sore throat missing a basketball game. My oldest son Caleb had a very bad earache. I had enough myself so I decided to take my oldest two kids to the ER besides myself.

Eight long dreadful hours later I was admitted to the hospital with Pneumonia in both lungs. The doctors and nurses were very concerned because I am Asthmatic and a single mom with very little support.

My kids were treated with their sympotoms (Strep throat and a bad case of an ear infection) and sent home. I had to do an AMA (against medical advice) form which the drs and nurses didn’t want me to do. They were afraid I wouldn’t come back. I promised them I would. I just wanted to get my kids taken care of and settled in. I said I would be back in an hour and I was.

I spent four days in the hospital being poked and probed, given breathing treatments every couple of hours, IV medications, etc.

I didn’t sleep the first two days because I missed my kids so much. I got nauseated the second day so I was given medicine to calm the nausea that I knew would help me sleep for awhile.

Before my discharge I was given a pneumonia and flu vaccination shot.

I went home with a purplish blue abdomen from all the injections I had to prevent blood clots while I was confined to bed.

After I was discharged from the hospital I stayed worried for at least a year I was going to get sick again. I didn’t want to.

My Life Coach (Mike Strawbridge, www.mikestrawbridge.com) performed Reiki on me about a month after my hospital stay. Amazingly, I have stayed very healthy since.

I was recently introduced to a vitamin supplement called OPC-3 which is made by ISOTONIX through Market America (www.marketamerica.com/journeytofreedom) I have been taking it now for two months. It has not only helped me with my Asthma but nearly cleared up all of my allergy symptoms! I feel great everyday as long as I take OPC-3. If I forget I will be reminded by my body.

I introduced it to my mom a few days ago and she is feeling so much better. See, my mom works at a wholesale nursery farm around plants all day. Which means allergies she has does not have a problem being triggered by the blooming plants, shrubs and trees. That was until I had her try OPC-3.

To learn more about OPC-3 visit my website portal http://www.marketamerica.com/journeytofreedom Or contact me by email: jennifer@empowering-solutions.net

My life changed just a couple of days before Mother’s Day. A good friend of mine had emergency surgery due to a ruptured intestine. It turns out the rupture was caused by a tumor. The day after Mother’s Day test results revealed the tumor is cancerous, is at stage 2.

I went and visited with my dear friend “Mimi” at the hospital. I was glad to see she was in great spirits although she was telling me everything was fine.

The following day I found out that reality had finally “hit” her.

Cancer has personally not touched me but it has touched people very close to me. Whether it has been skin cancer, liver cancer or even colon cancer, to me, Cancer is Cancer.

My ex husbands Uncle Randy lost his life to Cancer in 2000. He had a very aggressive form of Cancer diagnosed in late 1999 and fought it for nine months until he succomed to it at MD Anderson in Houston,TX.

Around that time Mamaw Gordon, my ex husbands grandmother and Randy’s mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. She had a radical mastectomy including having lymph nodes removed. In 2006, Mamaw also succomed to cancer that had recurred.

I could go on and on about the people I know who have been affected by Cancer personally or by someone who is very close to them.

As for Mimi, she will be starting Chemotherapy soon.

Personally my feelings are numb at the moment. I cannot fathom what she is going through though I am glad she has a big family whom I know is taking care of her and will in the upcoming months as she recovers.

Deep inside it does hurt because I do not want to see anyone I love and care about suffer. I know that deep inside that Mimi is a strong person and she will get through this.

I have seen what Cancer does to the patient as well as their family and friends. To me, it is so very important that there is a support system in place. Not only does the Cancer patient/survivor have to have support, mentoring and motivation everyone around that person does.

To be positive about anything whether it seems so bad, so negative on the outside is vital to survival.

For years I have wanted to work from home. I have spent hundreds of dollars over the years as a mom to make money while enjoying time with my children. After being burned countless times I gave up and worked outside the home. It wasn’t something I wanted to do but it’s what I ended up having to do.

Now that I am a single mom and going to school I wanted to find something I could do while taking my classes online from home. One business opportunity I had failed to thrive like I had hoped.

Then I was introducted to a business plan by a lady at church.

In the meantime my best friend helped me purchase my very own domain (http://www.jenniferbryan.com) I was excited! At first I had no idea what I was going to do with my own website. He gave me ideas and then I came up with some of my own.

For the last few months people had approached me after the classes we had at church that some of the things I had said in our discussions I had inspired them. I decided to work on inspiring others all over. I wanted to teach others what I have been learning for the past three years or so about how they can change their life for the better. I enjoy encouraging and uplifting others. What I enjoy doing the most is giving people positive words of encouragement. I have wanted to teach others how to change their words to positive ones and how they can change how they start out their days.

Another thing I wanted to do is teach others how they can stay at home and work.

My business is called Empowering Solutions (http://www.empowering-solutions.net) I am also an Independent Distributor for Marke America. I enjoy teaching others how they can save money, time, gas and their sanity by shopping online. I have also learned how I can change my life to a more healthier one and teach others the same techniques!

Everyday I take Market America’s Isotonix OPC-3 supplement. For years I have gone without taking a vitamin or any supplement. I dread taking pills as they make me nauseated and hurt my stomach many mornings. I also don’t like the fact you have to eat when taking a pill. With OPC-3 you just take a cap full and mix it with water in the cap provided with the supplement and drink it. I like the taste it has. Besides myself, people around me have noticed a great change in me too. I am feeling better and I handle life much better than I have. My allergies and Asthma I feel are under control now and not bothering me as much.

I have been told that with some people their allergies disappear and Asthma symptoms go away as well.

Right now my mom is trying out Market America’s SNAP! Laundry Detergent and Automatic Dishwasher Crystals. In fact, my mom had me order another bottle of the laundry detergent so my sister could also use it. The dishwasher crystals are working great. My mom and aunt are in the process of testing out the Global Plant Power as they are both very avid gardeners.

I have just begun using the dishwasher crystals myself and I am happy with the results.

My grandfather is trying out the dishwashing crystals, SNAP! Heavy Duty Concentrate, SNAP! Fabric Softener and Global Plant Power.

If you are interested in trying these products or any of the other products I offer in my website portal located at http://www.marketamerica.com/journeytofreedom please sign up as a preferred customer and/or contact me at jennifer@jenniferbryan.com

For more information regarding the business you may contact me by email jennifer@jenniferbryan.com OR you may include your mailing information for a free information packet that includes our catalog and product information, the business plan and a booklet about the company, Market America. There is no obligation for this information!

Market America has the presitigious honor of having a partnership with Google! They also have 2,700 partnerships with nationally known retail and online stores. When you shop through the Market America website portal you are rewarded! Market America is unique in the fact it is Vertical Distribution.

Many companies have attempted to copy Market America’s proven system and failed. Market America’s system is copyrighted! The plan requires time, effort and patience. You have the opportunity to earn a six figure income within two years. It just depends on

To become a Sales Representative is just $99.

To become a business owner like me an investment of $500-$1000 is required. This investment includes, teaching & training materials, Market America products, website portal purchase, UnFranchise subscription, Transfer Buy, Product Catalogs and much more. With this business plan you have the opporunity to earn commission checks and bonus checks!

Take a look at my website portal: http://www.marketamerica.com/journeytofreedom If you have any questions feel free to email me jennifer@jenniferbryan.com

Before my first child was born my husband at the time insisted I stay at home with our daughter. I was used to working before then. Dropping to one income was a hard thing for me and really us to be doing. This was before computers and internet became a staple in many homes.

I had to convince him nearly two years later to let me work a seasonal part time job watering plants at a nursery my mother worked at. I didn’t make much money as I had to pay for a babysitter but it got me out of the apartment.

After we got our first home we decided to hook up our hand-me-down desktop computer with internet. Back then it was good ole dialup. Our first ISP was Mindspring, AOL (for a short time) and then bellsouth.

I quickly learned about Ebay. I found things I wanted for my daughter, myself and my husband. Within six months I had done research and wanted to try selling. I didn’t have a digital camera in the beginning. When I did get a digital camera I still did not know how to use it so I ended up selling it.

One of my very first official digital cameras was a polaroid that you had to connect to your computer. I think it held around 25 pictures. I used it for nearly a year before I got a “real” digital camera.

We then made our first computer purchase (Gateway). That computer lasted maybe a year and then we got tired of all of the issues with it so we sold it to my mother for her work.

In the meantime we purchased a custom built Dell computer and a very nice Nikon Coolpix digital camera.

A friend of ours from nearby Georgia introduced me to a gentleman that owned a hobby shop he went to often. He wanted to move some inventory and wanted someone like me to help out selling on Ebay. For a few months this worked. The items that I was selling eventually emptied his inventory and the other items he gave me just were not selling. After awhile I gave up.

I went to numerous yard sales and had some luck selling items on Ebay. My grandfather and mom even gave me items to sell on Ebay. Of course like everything else I ran out of items that would sell.

I looked online at countless opportunities to work from home. Many of them wanted you to fork out $20, $30, $50 or more. I made the mistake of purchasing a book for $75 that supposedly had job opportunities working from home. The book had maybe 50 pages. I requested information from at least three companies and only heard from one. The one I had was making Christmas greeting cards using an exacto knife to cut out a reindeer. The first one I sent in did not pass their qualifications. I was given one more opportunity. After my first card being rejected even as I followed their very own instructions I gave up.

I was disappointed. I wanted to stay at home and make extra money. I didn’t care about getting rich. I wanted money that I could spend on my daughter, my home and myself.

I spent hours with veteran Ebayers and doing research to find out what I could possibly sell. I even looked into drop shipping. After several months of research I found one I really thought was legitamate. It didn’t cost much (about $8 to start out a month) to have access to the items they offered and they were name brand too.

I found a few items I could sell right away. I was having success for a time and I was excited. However, that was short lived. I began receiving emails about the items arriving defective or even working for a time then quitting. I discovered I could not find any customer service emails, telephone numbers or even an address. I was stuck and my only other choice was to refund money. Needless to say I lost hundreds of dollars.

I was very upset and disappointed.

I loved working at home and making money. I was looking for that niche which I thought I was onto and I got burned.

I stayed away from Ebay for nearly five years before I decided to return to school. I was looking for textbooks when I discovered Ebay was a great place to look.

After my second semester I decided to sell my textbooks. I made more money selling them on Ebay than selling them back to the bookstore!

I even got rid of some of my kids clothing through Ebay and made some extra cash.

I was also able to find great deals on clothing lots for my kids which helped me save money.

A year later I was given the opportunity to open an Ebay store and maintain it for a couple who has owned an industrial equipment company for 16 years. Unfortunately after six months it just did not make it off the ground as I had hoped for. I had even tried Ebay’s newest program, Ebay ProStores. I had opened my very own online store and within six weeks made one sale. It was not enough though to keep it open. As disappointed as I was I still was glad I had the opportunity to try it out.

In early 2008 I was introduced to another opportunity to work at home from a lady at church. This lady at my church up until this time had never told anyone about working at home. Many of us had been to her home which is a very nice one. We all had thought to ourselves how could she afford a home like this? I wonder what she does for a living? We knew her husband was a teacher and we knew there was no way he could afford this house on his salary.

Six weeks later we learned how she was able to afford the house.

She has been in a wonderful business with Market America since 1995. Way before the internet craze she had made her first 1 million in sales. To this date she has made 4 million dollars. Mind you this has been her job for 13 years now.

In the beginning learning about the business plan was quite overwhelming. I wanted to learn more but I also depended on my best friend who is business inclined to inform me. This plan was going to require time of me as well as a serious investment of money that I was going to have to work hard to save.

Everyone around me was excited and confident this plan is going to work. I was still a little apprehensive though.

One person had already done countless hours of research particularly on our team leader. Everything checked out fine.

As everyone else was joining I was beginning to feel left out. I wanted to be in the group. I just did not have the money yet. I knew soon I would have the money. I had the opportunity though to do my own research and study the plan. Everyone else just dove in.

It wasn’t until I went to a local training in Franklin, TN that I was convinced by our speaker, Bruce Holder that I didn’t need to worry about the money. I had to just do it. I met so many other people who have become successful and some who are on their way. I was excited about this business opportunity.

After the training I approached our team leader to let her know that I have decided I was going to sign up. She was so excited.

I had the fortunate opportunity to live in public housing for 2 1/2 years with my three children. At the same time we depended on government assistance: food stamps & the state’s medicaid program.

I say fortunate because I learned a lot about myself, the people around me as well as teaching my kids some valuable lessons along the way.

Besides the possibility of being homeless and living in the emergency shelter, I would consider living in public housing the very bottom of the totem pole.

Some of us learn while others do not. For those that do keep pressing on it takes motivation, support, encouragement and even one or more mentors to stick by them nudging every so often to make sure they stay on the positive pathway.

I won’t explain in this particular blog about the mistakes I made that lead me to live in public housing and depend on government assistance.

I vowed to myself that I was not going to live in public housing the rest of my life I wanted stability-including financial stability. I wanted better things for myself and my children.

After all, public housing WAS supposed to be temporary until people could get back on their feet-most in approximately 2 years.

Some of us know though that is Not the case. I mean who wants to put a family out on the street because they just are not very motivated and willing to perservere through poverty working their way up to even a middle class level?

People have to have mentors, mentors that are strong themselves willing to deal with one’s emotions and sometimes depression.

I have had many mentors along the way and each one of them played a significant role in my life.

I started with a mentor from a local crisis pregnancy center whom I am still friends with to this day, after nearly four years. When I decided to return to church the associate pastor and I met. We discussed my situation at the time then a few days later he set me up with a mentor from church.
Less than a year later I attended discipleship classes and met another mentor who became my life coach and a year later became my truest best friend.

Everyone of them stuck by me through some of the most difficult times in my life and made sure that I continued to stay on that path on my journey to stability.

I had to deal with constant judgement either because of what I had done or where I was living.

It was automatically in most minds of people that public housing was bad. It’s where the moochers live, the laziest people, the hopeless, drug addicted, alcoholics live and where the sinful people live.

While that may be true to an extent you have to look at the good in everyone.

Within my circle there was one other single mother who had small children, going to school, and working.
We had two families in the large apartments (four bedrooms) with five and six children respectively. The mother with six kids was separated although her husband spent time with them often. Her children ranged in age from 16 to 5 and they truly worked as a family. The mom worked and once the oldest two became old enough to work, they did.
Then we had the family with five children ranging in age from 9 to 2 1/2 where the mom was a state certified child care provider (yes, in housing). She was great with the children and very patient. All the kids in the neighborhood loved going to her apartment.
Our circle mostly kept to ourselves. We watched out for each others children when playing outside. If someone or their children were sick we stepped up to the plate and helped in whatever ways we could. There were countless times I brought groceries to a neighbor of mine who was taking care of her mother (which had placed a lot of stress on her).

I had two neighbors I was very close to. The one I gave groceries to her and her mother and another single mom of three kids with two of them being nearly the same age as my oldest two. She helped me out greatly at one of the most horrible times of my life. I really do not know what I would have done without her very gracious help.

We had the comical older Russian couple whom we really couldn’t communicate with because of a language barrier though honestly, it was a good thing.

We had some great times and some bad times though there were more great ones.

Every so often we had cook outs, basketball games, birthday parties and just porch get togethers.

But who would know outside and “across the railroad tracks” about the Good side of those who live in public housing?

The saddest issue has to be with our local churches. Only a few ever showed up to actually meet with the people of public housing. There were a few who came on a yearly basis such as one local known church of God nearby that brought a box of food and household cleaning supplies and such as well as another who brought a loaf of bread.

In the summertime there would be the churches from out of state who would come in and do activities with the children of the circles, hold vacation bible schools and do some cleaning up(weeding, mowing, weed eating).

I will never forget asking my own church to help out by bringing people to come and pick up the children in my circle and a few others so they could attend vacation bible school. Their excuses had to be the saddest and part of what lead me to eventually leave and attend a better, more positive, spiritual church. One excuse was regarding insurance legalities and the other by the pastor himself was “we’ll see what we can do.” I never heard a peep about it again. Needless to say another church ended up picking up the tab.

Otherwise we would see Lee University, our local big 4 yr private institution send their students who are required to do community service, come and visit and or bring groceries to those in need.

My three children were blessed to have been so active in church and school. Otherwise they would be like many of the children in public housing: starving for attention.

Many families were stressed to the brink. For one they were living in public housing, most needing government assistance such as food stamps. Many had mediocre jobs that were not going to get them above poverty. Worse yet, they do not have a mentor helping to motivate them to focus and make goals for better living.

One of my wishes is that more middle class and higher classes take a step off of their pedestals to reach out to those less fortunate to give their time. It doesn’t require giving away money or possessions, just time. Time that will teach them and those who they touch some great lessons about life. They also have the opportunity to watch a family who they are mentoring grow and flourish into better productive people relieving the strain off the government assitance programs.