Written by Alex Dalbey-Thomas, Communications Specialist, Emma Norton
“I [had] a place to basically heal, and actually reevaluate myself, my goals, my wants, my needs, and just put a different perspective on things.”
— Dominique, Emma Norton Services alumna
As the last of residents at Emma Norton move either to Restoring Waters, or independent apartment living in the community, there’s a special opportunity to reflect on what this space has meant for people’s healing journeys. These stories also show just how valuable it is to support this expansion of Emma Norton’s programs.
For many of the people who live in Emma Norton’s programs, the trauma they need to heal from started long before their experience with homelessness. Dominique is one of those people– from a young age, she struggled with others trying to control and define her. She was the only girl among ten brothers, and the disparities and tensions in her family worsened when she had her first child at age 15, eventually pushing her to leave home at age 16. The father of her children was murdered and she still carries a bullet in her body as a reminder of the violence that once surrounded her life. This trauma developed into alcoholism, and her battle with this disease eventually led to her losing her home and custody of her two youngest children.
For Dominique, Emma Norton Residence was a place where she could heal, and find empowerment and self-love. She saw her time with Emma Norton Services as an opportunity to gain the stability she needed to care for her children and discover her authentic self. “I’m learning how to be me,” said Dominique. “That’s what this is doing for me, it’s helping me to understand…I’m liked as who I am, not as who they see me as.”
After living at Emma Norton Residence for 14 months, Dominique moved into stable housing in the community. She intends to return to school to finish her degree in early childhood education, and become a youth counselor to help kids who are struggling as she once did. When asked what she is most looking forward to in her own apartment, Dominique answered, “Being out there on the streets, I wasn’t able to cook, and I actually missed it…a kitchen of my own…that’s something that I’ve been looking forward to for a very, very long time.”
Dominique’s story illustrates just how important the Emma Norton’s expansion through the creation of Restoring Waters truly is. With this new building, Emma Norton can serve more clients at once, and at a deeper level, all within a trauma-informed environment that facilitates healing and provides all residents with their own apartment (and kitchens!) within a supportive community!