Meet Tracey

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"I used to live right down the street from here. I had a condo on R Street. My son had got killed and I went off the deep edge.

My oldest daughter was staying with her father and my youngest daughter was with me and when I started using, Child Protective Services stepped in and they took her. And I wasn't willing to change because I was in so much pain from the loss of my son. I didn't think I was worthy of being a mother.

I was hungry one day and a guy told me that they were giving out food over here at SOME. So I went in one day and got something to eat. I heard all these girls coming in talking about 'they were going to the mountains' so I just kept listening in. So then on the way out I asked a lady, I said: 'Do they have a program here? She said: 'Yeah, they have a treatment program right across the street.'

I'll tell you what, the first meeting I had to come to, at that point I had still used. I came and sat in on a meeting and when they woke me up the meeting was over and they told me I had snored through the whole program, I mean the whole meeting. But they were real nice about it. They told me: 'But come back tomorrow.' So I felt so bad that I did that, I started getting myself together. From that point on I started paying attention in the meetings and I was determined that that wasn't how I was supposed to live."

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"So by the time I went to the mountains I was ready, you know, I was ready. It's beautiful up there, it's beautiful and serene. Trees, deer, and something about up there at night, you can see all the stars that you don't see here in the city. And there were many a nights I just sat gazing at the stars and just thinking about how my life could be and I got rid of all that pain.

And we went on camping trips, we walked to the top of a mountain, which was scary cause one step and it could be 'uh oh.' We got to the top we watched the sunrise. And I know I was so excited when we went on this camping trip. It was a long hike up, and so I was determined to get to the top and I was full speed ahead of them and came to a fork in the road where you go one way to get to the top and another way to go somewhere else.

And I kept walking cause I thought 'maybe I haven't caught up with them yet.' I was going, going, going. Then I realized I was lost. I said 'I'm not gonna panic because I know God didn't bring me this far to leave me,' so then I took a look out and I said: 'Wow.' It was such a long fall and so right there I sat there and said: 'Well, if you wanna go back and use drugs again, here's your time. You can commit suicide right here.' I just spoke with myself and I said: 'If that's what you're gonna do that's then go ahead and take a jump.'

So at that point in knew I was done and so finally I said 'okay' it looked like the sun starting to go down so I said 'I gotta regroup and find them.' So I started walking real fast and all of a sudden I heard 'Tracey, Tracey!' and finally they found me and they were laughing because they said I'd walked so many miles ahead of them. But I was in such great shape that it didn't bother me, not one effect. It just got me in touch with the person I used to be and I was able to let go and I was determined to bury all the things that were hurting me up on that mountain.

And when I returned they were gonna give my daughter up for adoption and SOME came in the nick of time because once I entered here, they were willing to work with me. And with them seeing the remarkable recovery and change they pulled back the adoption and they allowed me to get my daughter back. And so while SOME was working on me, the therapist was working with me and my daughter from Child Protective Services.

And I found out that through SOME, just keep coming here and feeling the warmth that there's nothing I can't endure and challenge and overcome. And so today my life is full. I have both of my children in my life and like I said, I've got my own apartment, I've been there for four years. I currently work in a hospital and I've been there four years.

It's just coming through here has kind of detoured me to the medical field because I just want to be able to give the warmth like it was given to me. And it's just, I can't say in words how much SOME has meant to me because when you're abandoned by your family and then you come here it's like you pick up a whole new family. I was nowhere near staying on this earth, I had no reason to be here.

And it was just me coming to get a simple meal that something about the energy in that cafeteria over there that just drew me across the street to get help. And I seen how the girls were coming in so bright and happy and talking about what's going on and some were saying they had just gotten back, and I kept saying I know want to feel just the way they do, I want to go back to feeling that way. I had to go see and I'm thankful that I did. It's been great, I'm telling you, my bad day is still a good day."

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So Others Might Eat has been working in the community for 40 years and has helped thousands of people get off the streets, transform their lives, and learn to live independently. We hope you will join our efforts by giving, volunteering, or advocating.