In the Mind of a Mother

Bonnie’s head hurt.  But it was no common headache that was giving her mind misery.

Her head hurt because her life was a horror film, and she was trapped in its reel of pain and fear.  Abused by her husband and HIV positive, the man had made her life miserable. 

She had to escape—had to get her children out—but she had nowhere to take them.  And every minute she hesitated, her black world intensified in agony.  Even her last fragile rays of faith were being devoured by darkness.

Finally, the pregnant 38-year-old could wait no longer; Bonnie grabbed her four children and ran.  For more than a year they were homeless, wandering from one shelter to another.  “It was very depressing,” Bonnie recalls.

When a counselor from Hennepin County helped her fill out an application for a Salvation Army permanent, supportive housing program, Bonnie thought she’d be on the waiting list forever.
           
One week after calling The Salvation Army, she was offered a place in the program.  When she arrived with her family, she was surprised at the generosity and community that welcomed her.  

“The Salvation Army has given me everything,” Bonnie said.  “When I came here, I only had the clothes on my back.  My mental stability, material things—everything—they gave me. It’s been a real blessing being able to talk with someone, knowing they support me.  I’ve been in shelters, but they’re nothing like The Salvation Army…. I didn’t even know places like this existed.”

For Bonnie and her children, The Salvation Army became a place of healing and change.  While her children have gone outward, finally feeling safe enough to converse with others, Bonnie has begun to look inward.  “It’s a change for me to be able to think about all the things that have happened to me,” she said. “I’m just getting back to being myself.  I’ve been here a year—[and already it’s the] clearest my head has been in years.”

The Salvation Army’s program impressed Bonnie. “I’ve been in quite a few programs,” she said.  “But this is one of the few that has worked….  A program like this is what a lot of people need—sickness and disease are hard to deal with,” Bonnie said.  “If it wasn’t for The Salvation Army, I would have cracked.”