Tina’s Story

Tina’s life changed faster than anyone could have imagined…

A series of traumatic events took her safety, her home, and her support system all at once. With nowhere to turn, she began living in her car, battling cold nights, exhaustion, serious health challenges, and the lasting trauma of domestic violence.

Even in that crisis, Tina held onto something powerful: determination. She didn’t know where to start, but she knew she wanted to rebuild.

Her turning point came during one of CSL’s Walk-In Days, when she met our Street Outreach team. For the first time in a long time, she felt seen, not as a situation to fix, but as a person with potential. Together, we built a plan forward, one step at a time.

None of it was easy. Every step required paperwork, appointments, and patience. But Tina met every challenge with grit. She showed up for every meeting, tracked down every document, and pushed ahead even when progress was painfully slow. Her courage wasn’t loud, it showed up in her consistency, in choosing hope on the hardest days.

That persistence led her somewhere she once thought was impossible. After years of instability, Tina now has a home of her own, a safe place she can lock, a bed to rest in, and a door she can close on the past.

With housing and stability, everything changes. She can focus on her health, build new routines, and finally exhale. Instead of surviving day to day, she can look toward her future with confidence.

We are deeply proud of her strength, her perseverance, and her refusal to give up on herself. Tina’s story is a powerful reminder: with support and a path forward, resilience can grow into possibility.

This is the start of her next chapter — and she is writing it on her terms.