Katarra and her daughter, 5/30/18

Today we congratulate Katarra and her daughter for ending their homeless situation. Read her story below about how she has had to move multiple times between couch hopping and shelters. We were happy to help her with her security deposit so she and her baby girl could move into a place of their own.

I first became homeless a year ago in March of 2017. I was still staying with my mother and I was also pregnant with my first child. My mother didn’t want anyone living with her unless they could afford rent. I was forced to leave because of this, I was expecting a child and had very little money to offer. For the past year I have been back and forth between shelters, homes of friends, and homes of family. The first shelter I lived at while I was pregnant called “Mama’s House”, was a very hard experience for me. It was my first time in a shelter and I struggled with getting used to the environment. After leaving Mama’s House I lived with a few family members and a few friends. On October 29th, 2017 my daughter Kailanni Ohana Woods was born. When she was born we stayed at my grandmothers for about a month. I left my grandmothers because it wasn’t really a safe place for me to have my daughter. With my dad being there at my grandmothers house as well being on drugs, it made it harder and a more dangerous place for me and my child to live. My mom offered for us to stay once again about a week before my 20th Birthday In December 2017. It didn’t work out because she claims to have wanted her house to herself again. The baby and I were at my moms for about a month before she told me to leave. After leaving my mom’s house I found the Coachella Valley Rescue Mission. I stayed at the Rescue Mission from January 2018 until the end of April 2018. I recently left the mission to stay with a friend, who has offered me her extra room at her apartment to sleep for the remainder of time until I get an apartment. I am seeking assistance and help with a security deposit and furniture when I move as well. I have been working very hard toward reaching my goal. I am hoping that soon my daughter and I will finally have the chance to be comfortable in a home that we can call our own. – Katarra

This family brings our placements this year to 78 and our grand total since we started OTS 4 years ago up to 588. Read more about our mission of housing the homeless at OTSHB.COM

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