When she finnished telling her story to the Chicago Tribune, Luz didn’t think much of it. A participant in several Heartland Alliance programs, she had been asked to speak with a reporter about the hardships that come with raising a family on an uncertain income. Unable to get more than part time hours at her retail job, she was soon unable to keep a roof over her son Marvin’s head. They ended up in a shelter.
“I tried to make things normal for him,” says Luz of that time. “I made my son do his homework, found a quiet spot for him to play a game.”
When Heartland Alliance found her a small studio in Edgewater, she couldn’t believe her fortune.
“This is my mansion,” she says, laughing as she spreads her arms in the living area.
So when Heartland Alliance asked her to speak about her struggles, Luz used her voice on behalf of others like her – those who worked hard, but couldn’t count on a roof over their head. She did an interview with the Tribune and laughed as she saw her picture in the newspaper. She went to bed that night feeling she had done something good by sharing her story.
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| “Mom. I Love You With All My Heart.”
Luz spells the words slowly and looks at her son, Marvin, 12, who is clearly embarrassed. He made it for her in school for Valentine’s Day, and she’s proud to say she has somewhere to hang it. Photo by Bob Black |
It wasn’t long before things changed in a big way.
“People really felt for her,” says Carmen Jimenez, Employer Partnerships Manager with Heartland Alliance, who helped Luz make a financial plan to live on her income and keep herself housed. “She worked so hard, and I think people sympathized with her struggling to make it in these tough times.”
The outpouring of support was overwhelming. One man paid her rent for a year. Dozens wrote letters to the Tribune with checks enclosed. Most importantly, though, one call led to a full time job.
“I looked at my last check from [my retail job]. It was for $70. My first check from my new job was so much bigger. It was a shock,” she says. “The gifts, a good job. I don’t know how to thank everyone.”
After such a windfall, though, Luz found herself wondering – what now? What’s the best way to use this opportunity to change my life for the long term?
“Carmen helped me figure out some goals and how to move towards them,” Luz says.
And what are those goals?
“Bedrooms!,” Luz says excitedly, laughing. “I also want to fix my credit. In five years, I just want to be stable and comfortable.”
And, of course, to see her son reach his goal of becoming a surgeon. He’s well on his way – attending a preparatory program for a prestigious high school in the city and busy with music lessons.
But after so much struggle, Luz found herself wondering – how many others are like me? How many people struggle like I did? And just like that, a woman who just a year ago was homeless became an advocate for those in need.
“[Politicians] have money for big stores and houses but not for people in need,” she says passionately. “Something has to change.”
Until then, though, there’s dinner to prepare and, although it’s spring break, she’s assigned her son reading to keep him sharp.
“We have a future now,” she says. “But I want more for him. [Thanks to Heartland Alliance], I can help him get it.”