December 2006

Aurora and Bill Long

My husband, Bill, was working nights, I was pregnant and our oldest son was living with his Auntie. It was very hard getting ahead. Then something awesome happened- we found God, we prayed, and God led us to Solutions for Change.

The day we entered Solutions was the beginning of our new life as a family. Solutions has been a great help and support for us. They gave us the chance to save enough money to get started and we eventually were able to get a place of our own. Solutions also showed us how to deal with everyday things such as work, parenting and our relationship not only with each other, but with others.

Now, three years later, we have our own apartment; we both work for Walmart where Bill recently was promoted to assistant manager. Our boys are happy and healthy.

December 2006

Maria Juarez: "I want you to know..."

I am writing this letter because I want people to know that programs like Solutions for Change really do change lives. While I lived at Solutions I joined a weight program and lost 80 p ounds, I won 3 scholarships during my last year of college and was flown to Sacramento to make a speech and won the state competition there. Through that I met a wonderful group, the Soroptimist club, where I have done a lot of networking and am still in contact with. I've been able to go and speak to women in safehouses to tell them my story and show them that there is hope. I graduated from MiraCosta College with my certificate in Accounting and got a job as... yes, an Accountant!

I moved into my own housing that Solutions helped me get and now I live on my own with my 2 girls. I am completely self sufficient today because I finally earn enough to make it. I know it was God along with my determination and perseverance that brought me here, but Solutions was definitely that hand up that I needed to lift me up along the way.

December 2006

A Mother's Story: My Daughter was Homeless in North County

To all interested parties,

In our complex social community, there are always adults who need public assistance of some kind. In most cas es these people have a history of making choices which got them into trouble. Retrospective analysis of the old welfare system gives us the clear picture that handouts of money or special housing don’t help these people. Handouts create a ghetto society which is self perpetuating.

Solutions for Change offers adults with families a “hand up” and a way out of the need for public assistance. They are able to accomplish this monumental task by selecting clients who are ready to be responsible and willing to change. The program systematically gives its clients help in developing habits and life change skills that allow them to enter society with all the tools they need to be successful. The program is run in a structured environment which encourages the clients to disassociate from people in their past who have contributed to their problems.

My daughter and her children have been living at Solutions for change for 6 months. She was only allowed into the program when she demonstrated her honest desire for personal change, and frankly that took two tries. She was not accepted the first time.
Since she has been living at Solutions for Change, she has gotten a job and kept it, been promoted to assistant manager, gotten a significant raise, found grant money to attend college, has been accepted at Palomar and begins her studies in January. She has also contributed regularly to a savings account which will provide the money she needs to get into her own living situation when she is ready. As part of her program she regularly participates in community service projects and works with her neighbors at
Solutions for Change, in a baby sitting coop to help manage child care for the residents. She is gaining a sense of community and problem solving skills, as well as the all important skill of delayed gratification with her savings program.

My daughter is happy for the first time in many years. She is no longer fearful of life and its challenges because she has a plan. She is learning to support her little family without help from other sources. She is a better, more organized mother. And, I have my daughter back.

I know that if she had not had this opportunity to live at Solutions for Change that she would still be struggling and much more at risk for returning to the habits and behaviors and the type of people that got her in trouble in the first place. Solutions for Change has given her the hope and the tools and skills she needs to make correct decisions which will lead to her success in anything she chooses to work at. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to Chris and Tammy Megison and all the residents who have contributed to this success story.

Sincerely,


Timmi Pracna
Resident of Vista, CA



December 2006

Laurie Frame

When my 10 year old boy and I came into the Solutions Family Center in July 2005 we were tired and scared. I had over a year of sobriety from my alcoholism, but there was no foundation in my life, no sense of security or purpose. I really had no one that I could trust. I felt isolated and alone. The rent was so high that we had to share an apartment with another family, but it wasn’t working and we had nowhere else to go. Faced with the terror of sleeping on the streets, I decided to ask Solutions for Change for help. Little did I know how dramatically my life would change. Today, for the first time, I feel like I am part of this community. Solutions saw something in me and helped me into a job working in one of their programs. It’s funny in a way because the job I have puts me in the hub of all the people who live at and visit Solutions. That feeling of isolation and lack of purpose has been replaced with a deep and meaningful interaction with others that is hard to describe. I have a foundation today, I not only trust others, but I trust myself.


December 2006

Sandra Bowman


At Solutions for Change, they say that I am the epitome of the phrase "never, ever, ever quit." As a young woman walking through those doors at Solutions for Change for the first time over two years ago, my life up to that point was summed up in one
word: chaos. I was an emotional, broken-down wreck. I was always looking outside of myself for the answer to life's challenges. I lived life from a victim's mentality.

Before coming to Solutions for Change, I was living in a one-room motel in Oceanside with my five children. The most difficult decision of my day was how I would get enough money to pay for another night at the motel and enough food so my kids didn't have to
sleep on the streets and go hungry.

The partnership with Solutions for Change changed all that for us. Today I live in a nice three-bedroom apartment, I pay affordable rent, have a savings account and a full-time job, which I have had consistently now for two years thanks to Solutions. It doesn't provide the big bucks, but it gives my family enough to get by. I've been clean and sober for over three years.

Sandra's letter was published December 11, 2006, in the North County Times, Letters to the Editor.


December 2006

Sarah & Toma

Hello. I'm Toma. 'Meaningless, empty and cold.' That’s how Sarah and I describe our lives before Solutions for Change. We were living on the streets, literally. Sarah was pregnant. But as soon as Sarah found Solutions for Change, she started to take
control of her life. I followed her lead and, together, we re-established our lives.

Now Sarah and I are married. We live in our own apartment. Sarah saved
a couple of thousands dollars while at Solutions for Change. We are parents to a two-year-old daughter and a six-year-old son. Sarah describes her life now as 'fulfilling, exciting and fun.' I say Solutions for Change was a Godsend. So thanks for your gift to
them. There are lots of people like Sarah and me who still need your help.



December 2006

Leanna Hurlbutt

My three children and I started our journey out of homelessness here in Vista a few years ago. Although we still live in Vista today, we are a world apart from how we used to live. Growing up in an abusive family and later in an abusive marriage I learned at a very young age that you absolutely did not talk about family situations and because of this, I became very introverted. When I came into Solutions for Change, they recognized this right away and started to provide me with the tools that I needed to overcome the “don’t tell” syndrome. While working the part of the program called Framework for Recovery, something clicked for me and I realized that recovery from all the loss and pain was an inside job. When I cared enough about myself to open up, to get rid of the negative self-talk, I started taking responsibility for my choices and began holding myself accountable for my own happiness. My whole life changed. I’ve been working for the same Vista business for a couple of years. Solutions helped me get into an affordable apartment. The difference in my kids lives today still makes me cry sometimes…I love them so much. When we got here they were hungry and scared and now they are safe, happy and healthy. THANK YOU North County for giving us a chance.

August 2006


The Garcia Family

To all the staff of solutions –

I feel compelled to write a letter showing my appreciation for your understanding and hard work.

Prior to my family entering the Solutions shelter, I had called over 30 residential programs from San Diego to Bakersfield. My husband had an outstanding probation issue that required him to be in a structured residential program until Dec. 22, 2006. Two months went by and we struggled very hard, barely making it day-to-day

Every program we called, either didn’t have room for our family of 6, or couldn’t help us..

On May 26, 2006, I had given up. I stopped calling programs and gave our entire situation to God.

That day, a family member gave me a list of resource numbers, all of which I had already called. The last number on the list said “Solutions”.

I called the number expecting the same response, “No two parent families”, or the famous, “No room.”

I was greeted on the phone by a woman named Laurie. I explained to her my situation and to my surprise, her words were “We’re not like most shelters, we can help.” I immediately started to cry. She explained to me a little about the program, and asked me some questions. She gave me an appointment, and before I hung up, she told me, “I’ll see you on Wednesday, everything’s going to be okay.”

I showed up on Wednesday, May 31, 2006, hoping for the best, but expecting the worst. The same woman, Laurie, gave both me and my husband an application. When we got to the criminal and drug history section, we looked at each other with the same look – “Should I be honest?”

For the first time in a long time, we were 100% honest. At this point now, I’m really expecting the worst because my honesty on paper doesn’t exactly make us look like upstanding people. We reluctantly turned them back into Laurie and waited.

A few minutes later, we met with a woman named Christine. Her first question was, “Why are you here?” I immediately began crying. I broke down and was completely honest with a total stranger. This went on for about an hour. Christine called a woman named Barbara, and asked if there was room for a family of 6. When she hung up, she said it’s pretty full, but Barbara will call you later and let you know when you can move over there.

Three long hours later, Barbara called and said we can move in that same night. I felt so relieved; all I could do was cry.

My family and I arrived at the shelter that night and were greeted by AnnMarie and Laurie, who made us feel right at home.

I’ve been at the shelter now for almost a month and a half. I feel safe and comfortable now, a feeling I haven’t had in a while. I don’t always like it here, but Barbara tells me that’s a good thing because if I like it, I may never leave. I think she’s right.

In the small amount of time we’ve been there, I’ve seen a lot of changes in my family, good ones. We work as a team now, something that we haven’t always done. We have 350 days clean and feel better than I’ve ever felt. Thank you for your kindness.

The Garcias (Kortni, Jesus, Jessica, Makennah, Cyress, Makayla)

August 2006


Experience, Strength, and Hope
by: Laurie Frame

I grew up in San Diego, the second to the youngest of 9 kids. Both of my parents were functioning alcoholics, and I grew up in a very strict and chaotic home.

After High School…I went to college in LA and when I graduated, I went to work in the music industry, a business in which drinking and doing drugs are the “norm”.

In my late 20’s, I met and married my now X husband…and at the age of 31… I had my first child.

After years of social drinking and heavy partying every weekend…mixed with my husband and I divorcing, I felt like my life was falling apart.

Alone again, and now a single Mom, I struggled with the responsibilities of raising my son on my own. I began drinking daily to ease my pain and numb my fears.

By my late 30’s…I entered my 1st detox center.

Thru many bad choices and fighting addiction…I took many dark turns which eventually resulted in my homelessness.

When I first entered Solutions for Change, I was broken, hopeless and desperate. Here I was now 50 years old, with a 10 year old son and very little to show for my time on this earth.

I did have 1 year of sobriety and shortly after entering Solutions, I began to get that “Glimmer of Hope”… I had a feeling that everything was going to be OK.

I realized the mess that I had made of my life… and Anthony’s life… and being here at Solutions, gave me a foundation to begin rebuilding what I had destroyed emotionally, spiritually, financially and with many relationships.

This program has given me the opportunity to have a safe place to live and time to sort out and start healing the “wreckage of my past”.

I now feel very optimistic about not only today…but the future.

I am so grateful for this program, for sobriety, for the healthy relationships I now enjoy and another chance at a truly fulfilling life for myself and my son.

Today, I feel a great sense of accomplishment, being able to graduate from Solutions, who has supported, encouraged and given me the tools and direction I need to continue evolving into the woman and mother…that God intended me to be.

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