The Gift of New Hope
The evangelist Ruth Carter Stapleton once wrote, “Christmas is most truly Christmas when we celebrate it by giving the light of love to those who need it most.” Leigh Ann is one of those who needed it most.”
“I never thought I’d be homeless,” Leigh Ann says. “I had a good job and owned my own home.”Then came the tragic accident that left her partially disabled, unable to work and facing homelessness for the first time.
“I lived wherever I could,” she recalls. “I stayed with friends, lived in a hotel for a while, then my car. I finally ended up on the streets, asking people for food.”
One winter night, a good Samaritan wrapped a heavy blanket around Leigh Ann and pointed her to City Rescue Mission. She arrived to find satisfying meals, warm clothing and hope for the future. “I had to put the work in myself,” Leigh Ann says of our Bridge to Life recovery program. “But I was surrounded by people who cared about me.”
Today, Leigh Ann is working at a job that accommodates her disabilities, and she’s saving to move into her own place again.
“Everything is looking up,” she says. “I want to be an example to show other people that anything is possible if you have God in your life.”
“Sometimes, we all need people to help us get where we’re going,” she adds. “You never know when something could happen to you, like what happened to me. I hope donors know this is the best gift they could ever give. I am totally grateful for everything they did for me.”
