In her mid 20s, Mia* was in and out of homelessness. Starting in 2017 Mia moved between shelters and group homes for nearly two years, occasionally sleeping on a pad at DuPagePads’ Interim (Overnight) Housing sites. Staff helped Mia understand her options to pursue a stable housing plan and in October 2019 Mia made her first visit to the Client Service Center to meet her case manager. This led Mia to attend group sessions where she developed understanding for how her mental health and disabilities could be addressed while forming a healthy support system. Attending programs including Women’s Wellness, Harmony Hope & Healing, and Walking in Our Shoes helped Mia acknowledge her own health needs. With improved health and understanding of herself, Mia was ready to end her homelessness and move into a home of her own with the help of her case manager.
Mia’s plans for stable housing became jeopardized when COVID-19 caused the temporary closure of all Interim Housing locations. She attempted to reunite with family for shelter, but the lack of support and strain on her health forced Mia back to homelessness. With no options for shelter, Mia’s case manager quickly moved to action entering her into a Emergency Housing hotel room as part of DuPagePads Emergency Response to keep clients safe from COVID-19. While in the hotel, Mia continued to focus on her physical and mental health, contacting doctors, attending appointments safely, and taking prescribed medications regularly. All of these improvements continued as Mia worked with her case manager to enter the DuPagePads Permanent Supportive Housing program
“When I called to inform Mia she was approved, she screamed with joy on the phone and was in disbelief that after years of homelessness she would finally have her own home.” shared her case manager. “I was so happy we had the support we needed to keep her safe and help her finally find a place to call home.
Mia is one of more than 140 people DuPagePads Emergency Housing has kept safe with your support, and one of over 30 households that have successfully moved from Emergency Housing into a stable home since the start of COVID-19. To help more clients like Mia find a home, DuPagePads has established the Moving Home initiative. A community-wide collaboration to raise the funds and basic supplies necessary to move every client currently in Emergency Housing from a hotel room to a home of their own while provided with ongoing DuPagePads case management support. Learn more about how you can help clients like Mia to transform by visiting dupagepads.org/solutions/
*This client’s name has been changed to maintain privacy.
