Who is the Julia Greeley woman?
Who is the Julia Greeley woman? There is no one answer to that question, because our residents join us from many circumstances. Lala, who you see on the right, and Camille, on the left, joined us several years apart. Both women showed the desire to succeed. Lala works in a transportation-related business which has been certified by the city as essential and may remain open during the Covid-19 crisis. She is a wonderful resident, kind and helpful to all, and careful and very conscientious about following our current safety protocols.
Camille was a longstanding federal employee who became disabled several years ago and came to the Julia Greeley home to reset the boundaries of her life. She quickly regained her office management skills while she was with us. Today she is a happily retired and enjoying life with her family and grandchildren.
Each resident and former resident has her own story. One resident has set a goal to return to hospital administration work someday, while another is looking for whatever kind of honorable work that will help her support her children. Other Julia Greeley residents are determined to find housing they can afford, or a way to reconcile with family, or, as one woman put it, “use this time to pray and meditate and figure out how to move forward in my life.”
What do they have in common? Each woman has been recently homeless because of a crisis in her life, such as domestic abuse, a rupture with family, or financial hardship. One resident uses a vivid word to describe it — “a period of turbulence”— while another woman said the trauma of her life came as a shock to her, because, “I had a wonderful life, I came from a good stable home, with a solid career,” and she added, “This is not what I anticipated life to be.”
At the Julia Greeley Home a woman is freed from the dangerous conditions of homelessness and poverty, so she can step back and peacefully examine what led to her own “period of turbulence.”
From there, we encourage each woman to create fresh, new goals anchored in self confidence and the awareness of her own God-given dignity, because we believe that is the best foundation for creating a strong, independent life.
Strong women like Lala and Camille prove that success is possible, if a woman is given the time and spiritual support to recover from trauma, and a setting where she is treated with dignity and respect.