Arms of Hope Update
by Leslie Salinas, Marilyn Flores, and Patrick Lemmons
The partnership between Impact and Arms of Hope continues to affect lives in many ways; here are a few short but powerful stories to illustrate that.
Ms. Royale is a foster parent to four children and was in a challenging situation. She was in the process of recertifying her foster care status when her home failed the inspection due to minor details. Ms. Royale rented a hotel for a week while the updates to her home were being made, and during this time the children were going back to school and needed support. The Houston Outreach Center assisted the family during this transition by providing back to school supplies and access to Impact’s Resource Center. She was also connected to another partner organization for a 6-week money management course. Ms. Royale was able to move back into her home after the repairs, keep her foster children safe, and continue working on her recertification.
When Jose Rodriguez married his wife she had three children and he adopted them. She was able to be a stay at home mom to care for the children because he is an electrician and does very well for himself. He takes pride in his work. He had an accident at work, however, when he was electrocuted and was left with a wound on his foot. He was unable to work because the wound became infected, and is still not cleared to work. His wife began seeking employment, but paying rent became a problem, and his landlord refused to cooperate by allowing him to go on a payment plan. We provided Mr. Jose with a safe space to talk through his hardship and helped him access the financial assistance he needed. He was also seeking spiritual growth, and we connected him with a bible study and adult and children’s bibles. Mr. Jose was very thankful that AOH was able to help him and his family; let’s continue to pray for them.
Ms. Shannon Warrick and her amazing family became connected to us when she came for food from Impact’s Resource Center. The Warricks have had custody of Mr. Warricks 10-year-old nephew since he was three, and have been working with the child to overcome all of the trauma he experienced before he came to them. She stated that this year has been a very difficult one for her family. Her husband was laid off from a company where he worked for over 30 years, and shortly after became ill with a brain injury and brain bleeding. Ms.Warrick also lost her job as well when her son broke his leg and she had to navigate multiple doctor appointments. The Warricks were seeking financial assistance with their utility bills, and we were also able to subsidize their expenses through Impact’s Resource Center and provide spiritual growth resources. Let us continue to pray for the Warricks, a family who is working tirelessly to overcome many challenges.
