Broken to blessed: Woman goes from homelessness to managing a store in 4 years

1 year ago 28

IT TOOK ME A LONG TIME TO GET TO WHERE I’M AT. IT REALLY DID. I WAS BROKEN. THAT’S WHY ANNIE TURNED TO SAINT VINCENT DE PAUL. SHE CHECKED HERSELF IN TO THE SAINT JUDE WOMEN’S RECOVERY PROGRAM IN 2018, WHICH IS NOW KNOWN AS THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE TRANSITIONAL HOUSING PROGRAM FOR BOTH WOMEN AND MEN. I WENT INTO SAINT JUDE WITH THE CLOTHES ON MY BACK. THAT’S ALL I HAD. THEY CLOTHED ME, FED ME EVERYTHING. AFTER SPENDING ABOUT A YEAR IN THE PROGRAM, ANNIE STARTED WORKING HERE AT THE SAINT VINCENT DE PAUL THRIFT STORE IN DORSEY PLAZA AND HER HARD WORK AND DEDICATION EARNED HER THE STORE MANAGER POSITION. YOU COULD GO TO WORK AND YOU GET A JOB AND IT TAKES UP YOUR TIME. YOU KNOW, WHERE YOU’RE NOT JUST OUT THERE DOING ANYTHING, AND IT DEFINITELY HELPS YOU STAY SOBER. SAINT VINCENT HAS SEVERAL PROGRAMS FOCUSED ON HELPING THOSE IN NEED, OFFERING PROGRAMS SUCH AS JOB ASSISTANCE, SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT, STABLE HOUSING AND SAFETY FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIMS. IF OUR CLIENTS ARE SUCCESSFUL AND THEY’RE ABLE TO GO OUT INTO THE COMMUNITY TO BE PART OF THE JOB PROCESS, I MEAN, SO THAT LOWERS UNEMPLOYMENT. YOU END UP MEETING PEOPLE IN THERE THAT SUPPORT YOU. AND, YOU KNOW, EVEN AFTER YOU’RE CLEAN FOR A LONG TIME, THEY’RE STILL THERE FOR YOU TO HELP YOU THROUGH HARD TIMES. ANNIE CREDITS ALL OF HER SUCCESS TO THE PEOPLE SHE’S MET AT SAINT VINCENT DE PAUL. AND FINALLY REALIZING THAT I CAN DO SOMETHING WITH MY LIFE, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE I ALWAYS FELT LIKE THE THINGS THAT I DID IN THE PAST, I WAS NEVER GOING TO BE ABLE TO AMOUNT TO MUCH. AND WITH HER HARD TIMES BEHIND HER, SHE PLANS TO CONTINUE DOING WHAT SHE LOVES. I’M GOING TO STAY HERE. THIS IS WHERE I WANT TO STAY. YOU GUYS HAVE A GOOD DAY. I LOVE MY JOB AND WE’RE LIKE FAMILY. ALL OF US AR

Annie Smith was living on the streets in 2018, addicted to drugs, and sitting at rock bottom. Then, she found the St. Vincent de Paul Women's Recovery program, and the rest is history."I was broken," Smith said. "I went into with the clothes on my back, that's all I had. They clothed me, fed me, everything."After spending a year in the program, Smith began working at the St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store in Louisville, Kentucky. She hung clothes and sorted through donations for the store. Fast forward to 2022, Smith was promoted to the store's manager."I'm finally realizing that I can do something with my life. I always felt like because of the things that I did in the past, I was never going to be able to amount to much," Smith said.The Women's Recovery Program is now known as the Domestic Violence Transitional Housing Program, but its goal is still the same; to help those in need find the treatment they need."We have a clothes closet, we have the food pantry, we offer counseling services," said Danielle Bell, director of the transitional housing program. "So there's a huge gamut all through St. Vincent de Paul."Smith said she attributes her success to the people she's met at St. Vincent de Paul and hopes to inspire others to follow in her path to getting help."They have all kinds of help. They have counselors, they can get you in the right place," Smith said. "Don't give up on yourself. Even if you don't go to Saint Vincent, go somewhere."For more information on St. Vincent de Paul, click here.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. —

Annie Smith was living on the streets in 2018, addicted to drugs, and sitting at rock bottom. Then, she found the St. Vincent de Paul Women's Recovery program, and the rest is history.

"I was broken," Smith said. "I went into [St. Vincent de Paul] with the clothes on my back, that's all I had. They clothed me, fed me, everything."

After spending a year in the program, Smith began working at the St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store in Louisville, Kentucky. She hung clothes and sorted through donations for the store. Fast forward to 2022, Smith was promoted to the store's manager.

"I'm finally realizing that I can do something with my life. I always felt like because of the things that I did in the past, I was never going to be able to amount to much," Smith said.

The Women's Recovery Program is now known as the Domestic Violence Transitional Housing Program, but its goal is still the same; to help those in need find the treatment they need.

"We have a clothes closet, we have the food pantry, we offer counseling services," said Danielle Bell, director of the transitional housing program. "So there's a huge gamut all through St. Vincent de Paul."

Smith said she attributes her success to the people she's met at St. Vincent de Paul and hopes to inspire others to follow in her path to getting help.

"They have all kinds of help. They have counselors, they can get you in the right place," Smith said. "Don't give up on yourself. Even if you don't go to Saint Vincent, go somewhere."

For more information on St. Vincent de Paul, click here.

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