Struggles from the very start of
life can be insurmountable, but determination to turn things around can lead
you right where you need to be. When Raeleene
found Maple House, she discovered truly compassionate people who taught her to
make a change. They showed her the path
she could be on to pay it forward and help others make that same change for a
better life.
Raeleene was only three years old
when her father passed away. Her mother
struggled with a heroin addiction forcing Raeleene to live with her
grandmother. As a young girl, Raeleene rebelled
against her family and began abusing drugs at the age of fifteen. She was in and out of juvenile hall in San
Bernardino through adolescence and continued battling a drug addiction through
adulthood. She smoked and injected meth
for years, even once she became a mother.
It was a constant struggle to care for two young children (now ages 6
and 3) while dealing with a severe drug addiction.
“I was falling apart, homeless with my kids.”
Her daughter went to live with her
mother because the experience of living in and out of motels frightened
her. She kept her son with her as she
went through the daily motions of abusing drugs, avoiding the police and
finding a place to stay each night. She
knew she had to make a change.
“We didn’t need to be sitting outside restaurants hoping someone would give us food. I had to snap myself out of what I was going through.”
Finally, Raeleene made her way to
Cedar House. She was able to move into
Maple House with her two children, and they stayed there for ninety days while
she went through treatment.
“The structure kept me in check. The classes really caught my attention and helped me dig deep.”
Raeleene is committed to staying
clean. She graduated from Cedar House,
went to aftercare meetings and says she never wants to go back to her previous
lifestyle. She credits her new life to the
staff at Maple House.
“I could always be myself with them. I owe all my success to them.”
Her dedication to recovery is
paying off. Raeleene has been clean for more
than a year and lives in transitional housing as a house manager where she is
able to help other women every day.
“This is such a blessing to me.”
Raeleene’s plan is to enroll in school
and study to become a drug counselor.
“My goal is to work at Maple House to help them like they helped me.”