“They told me to not give up, that they believed in me. That made all the difference!”
Chandra spent her childhood in a way no child should have to. She lived in fear from her drug addicted Mother and the dark, vicious world she brought home. She was placed with her grandmother. But her Grandmother would yell at her that she was “bad and evil, just like her Mother.” Eventually Chandra began to believe it. In Chandra’s words “Adults don’t realize as kids we believe you, we take it all in, I believed her…I didn’t think I had a choice.” The only friends she knew were the wrong kind and Chandra’s small mistakes became larger.
She began to follow in her mother’s footsteps: becoming a mother too young, using drugs, and going in and out of jail. Her long-term mental and physical suffering eventually took its toll. She ended up in prison.
Fortunately Chandra found Mercy through Catholic Charities Criminal Justice program. The first year of her journey was difficult, but Chandra began to believe that she could get a good job and get her children back.
With new skills and filled with hope, Chandra went on job interviews. The rejection was discouraging. “Who is going to hire someone like me?” “They told me to not give up, that they believed in me. That made all the difference!” Then finally, a call for an interview and she got the job. She couldn’t hold back the tears. Today, Chandra and her children have been re-united and she is working toward her future goals.
