Renewal Story: Mary Jane

When she moved in with her children, Mary Jane thought her “off and on” years of homelessness were finally “off” for good. Then, she says, her children moved to Corpus Christi and left her behind with no job and nowhere to stay.

“I had lived under a bridge for a while,” Mary Jane recalls of her earlier years on the streets. Thanks to you, she didn’t have to go back to that life again. A hot meal, a warm bed and a new beginning were waiting for Mary Jane at UGM-TC. 

“I feel safe here,” Mary Jane tells us. “I have a lot of good friends and my case manager is awesome.” Mary Jane says that staff at the Mission treat her with respect and give her a sense of stability. “You don’t have to carry all your stuff with you every day. You can go out and look for jobs and know you have someplace to come home to.”

While Mary Jane works on getting a job and housing, the Mission provides her with plenty of activities to get involved in. She enjoyed participating in the activities UGM-TC had planned on North Texas Giving Day to celebrate their 130^th anniversary. The event raised over $60,000 to provide new computers and tools for the Children’s Enrichment Program and raised awareness of people experiencing homelessness. “When you’ve walked in those shoes, you look at homeless people a lot different,” Mary Jane says.

More recently, Christmas at the Mission was also a special time for Mary Jane. She received a gift basket and, even more importantly, was able to get a gift to give to her grandson. But the greatest gifts are the ones you provide as you reach out to hurting people like Mary Jane. Thank you!