by Cindy Neilbock
Here's a quick story. Thanksgiving Day St Francis is closed. I'm walking from the shelter. I look up and lo and behold my friend NY has stopped, backed his car up and given me a ride to St Francis. When I tell you about the block party we had across the street and the outpouring of love, the food we received, money, dessert, we got everything except liquor! What a day!
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Meanwhile I got a new daughter (whom I adore). She still comes and sees me occasionally.
By Christmas my wolf pack was still going strong, then something wonderful happened. Grandma Hood was coming OMG. I could not believe it. As of right now I have a 26-year-old grandson, 2 grandsons and 2 granddaughters on the way, plus 38 more.
By February I celebrated my 60th birthday on the patio of St Francis. I walked out and they all started singing Happy Birthday! Unfortunately my degenerative joint disease was progressing way too fast for me. See I'm losing the the padding in my hip area (both hips to be exact), plus my heart was skipping a beat. So now I’ve had to slow down my pace and it’s harder to get around. And my relationship was still not going good.
Now how I met my X. He came in to St Francis one day and saw me sitting in the corner. I looked up and he winked at me and that was it. It gave me a good feeling.
Shelter life! Now when I first got here, I was in a shelter. First thing the staff told me was watch my belongings. Great, just what I needed to hear. From 8pm-4am I'm lucky if I slept at all. I’d wake up at 4am and get ready to leave.
I could walk from the shelter to the 16th St Mall – take the free ride to Curtis then walk down to St Francis then stand in the line to get in. I’d have to take a break on the Mall, then another across from Elway’s, because of the aching. You would not believe how many people said Hi Mom. I thought to myself, is this my destiny? My family kept growing.
My time in the shelter was well worth it. I had peace and quiet some nights, and other nights I played security guard, looking after the staff members. Some of the girls had behavior issues, and would go after them. Sometimes I didn't get to sleep til 1am. Then I went into the CHUM program.* A cot, hot meal and some good girl talk. Occasionally I would go back to the shelter. I was happy to see the girls and them me.
By this time I acquired a few more kids. Kids who say good morning, how are you mom, do you need anything. It's a wild ride for me--being mom to so many. It feels good to be needed. Well... there will be more to tell.
*The Women’s Homeless Initiative program, run by Capitol Hill United Ministries, or CHUM, hosts 20 women and transgendered individuals at a different participating church each night. Guests are selected by 9am each morning at St Francis Center (2323 Curtis St) through a lottery process, and are transported between St Francis Center and the church by bus.
.
Meanwhile I got a new daughter (whom I adore). She still comes and sees me occasionally.
By Christmas my wolf pack was still going strong, then something wonderful happened. Grandma Hood was coming OMG. I could not believe it. As of right now I have a 26-year-old grandson, 2 grandsons and 2 granddaughters on the way, plus 38 more.
By February I celebrated my 60th birthday on the patio of St Francis. I walked out and they all started singing Happy Birthday! Unfortunately my degenerative joint disease was progressing way too fast for me. See I'm losing the the padding in my hip area (both hips to be exact), plus my heart was skipping a beat. So now I’ve had to slow down my pace and it’s harder to get around. And my relationship was still not going good.
Now how I met my X. He came in to St Francis one day and saw me sitting in the corner. I looked up and he winked at me and that was it. It gave me a good feeling.
Shelter life! Now when I first got here, I was in a shelter. First thing the staff told me was watch my belongings. Great, just what I needed to hear. From 8pm-4am I'm lucky if I slept at all. I’d wake up at 4am and get ready to leave.
I could walk from the shelter to the 16th St Mall – take the free ride to Curtis then walk down to St Francis then stand in the line to get in. I’d have to take a break on the Mall, then another across from Elway’s, because of the aching. You would not believe how many people said Hi Mom. I thought to myself, is this my destiny? My family kept growing.
My time in the shelter was well worth it. I had peace and quiet some nights, and other nights I played security guard, looking after the staff members. Some of the girls had behavior issues, and would go after them. Sometimes I didn't get to sleep til 1am. Then I went into the CHUM program.* A cot, hot meal and some good girl talk. Occasionally I would go back to the shelter. I was happy to see the girls and them me.
By this time I acquired a few more kids. Kids who say good morning, how are you mom, do you need anything. It's a wild ride for me--being mom to so many. It feels good to be needed. Well... there will be more to tell.
*The Women’s Homeless Initiative program, run by Capitol Hill United Ministries, or CHUM, hosts 20 women and transgendered individuals at a different participating church each night. Guests are selected by 9am each morning at St Francis Center (2323 Curtis St) through a lottery process, and are transported between St Francis Center and the church by bus.
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