My name is Carol, I’m 52 years old and for the first time in my life, I became homeless this year.

I had lost my job after 21 years and drained my savings to try to keep my apartment until I could no longer financially afford it. As I packed my last few belongings into my car it finally hit home, “I am homeless.”

Then Hundred Nights came into my life on February 8th 2018, or should I say we came into each other’s lives. That first day arriving at Hundred Nights, I was nervous and extremely afraid. My first meeting that day was with some of the staff members and volunteers there. I had never in my life dreamed that I would end up being in a homeless shelter.

The volunteers and staff saw how much this experience was affecting me, and helped and encouraged me through this new transition in my life. I don’t even have the words to describe how it felt. On that day and during the following weeks ahead, I met many people: all the staff, many volunteers, and yes, many homeless people, who were all kind and encouraging. I had a warm and safe place to sleep at night. The staff referred me to SCS and had me meet with people in their housing programs. I was told about jobs that were open and where to go for dinner and showers.

“I am homeless.” You know, sometimes people do not choose to be homeless. In some cases, life chooses it for them.

My journey was scary but also very rewarding. Everyone whom I’ve had the pleasure of meeting was part of the most life-changing experience I have ever had. I am grateful.

I was focused on what I needed to do, because remaining homeless was not an option for me. I was determined. I was fortunate to have the experience of first finding a part-time job and then being offered a position at Hundred Nights. They said I fit right in!

I saved for almost two months while I was at the Hundred Nights Shelter and was able to get back on my feet. I moved into my new apartment, which the staff at Hundred Nights helped me to find, on April 8th, 2018, two months to the day after arriving at Hundred Nights,

I have learned that no one is immune to becoming homeless. If it happened to me, it can happen to anyone. So when you see a homeless person on the streets, please be kind and show compassion towards them.

Everyone has a story. This is my story. I was homeless.