Laura, a physician in her native Mexico, came to the United States for what she thought was just a vacation. While she was here, however, she fell in love, then got married and had two sons. Eight years later, when she was pregnant with her daughter, she could no longer take her husband’s emotional abuse and left her marriage. She also left behind her home, car, money and her job in a county clinic. She became a single mom who had to work very hard to support her children.
Her plight continued, in 2001 Laura had a brain aneurysm. She could no longer speak and was in a wheelchair and unemployed for over two months. As she recovered, Laura’s family suggested she do something for herself, so she came to Fresh Start and attended one of the workshops. Shortly after, she joined the Fresh Start mentoring program, and there she found a community of support. She went back to college and now has a scholarship. Her goal is to show her kids that she can become a doctor in the United States as she was in Mexico.
All Laura needed were the tools to help herself. That’s what thousands more women will find at the Jewell McFarland Lewis - Fresh Start Women’s Resource Center. At the Center women have access to the resources that can improve their lives.
In Laura’s words, “Fresh Start makes all women feel important. Because of them, I have hope and confidence. The people at Fresh Start are earth angels. They work from the heart.”