Becky’s Story

For the last two and a half years, Becky has held the position of professional juggler. She has been balancing career, school, raising two children on her own while their father lives overseas, improving her credit score, studying for and becoming a U.S. citizen, and making her mental health a priority. In February of 2021, Becky moved into Warren Village with her son, Zion, and daughter, Zoe. Before Warren Village, Becky’s housing situation had been a series of rental homes with roommates or the little family she had living in the United States. She even briefly returned to her home country of Ethiopia when Zion was born. Without stable housing and child care to return to in Colorado, Becky had to make a difficult decision. She returned to Denver alone, and Zion stayed with his father in Ethiopia. “It was really hard to come back without Zion. He was one year old. I didn’t have a choice.” 

When she returned to Denver without Zion and pregnant again with Zoe, Becky knew she had to make a change for herself and her family. During her first pregnancy, Becky’s nurse had told her about Warren Village. She had applied then, but the waitlist was long. Now, Becky applied again, and got an apartment. She moved in, got settled with her new baby girl, and a few months later brought Zion back to Denver. “I brought Zion back here because I have stable housing now, and he could be enrolled in school at Warren Village,” says Becky. “I don’t have to worry about anything now like housing or support, because I have Warren Village.” Becky, Zion, and Zoe’s life here was slowly coming together.

In her time at Warren Village, Becky has taken on and accomplished so much with the support of staff. In September 2022, she became a U.S. citizen. She earned a certificate in medical billing and coding in April 2023, despite missing many classes due to child care struggles during the pandemic. Her Family Advocate and the Director of the Early Learning Center both supported Becky as she worked with unending determination to finish her program despite the challenges she faced as a single parent. With the help of her Family Advocate, Becky got a job at Denver Health. She is excited to move up within the Denver Health system as she gains work experience. She has worked hard to raise her low credit score with a  financial coaching advisor who works with residents and classes led by Warren Village staff. She has prioritized her mental health and sees the mental health clinicians on staff. “I grew up with a big family. I have four sisters and two brothers back home. It’s hard to be by myself here with the kids. I don’t have anybody to talk to,” says Becky. “I need someone to talk to when I’m really stressed, and so I worked with [mental health clinician] Luke.” 

Zion and Zoe have grown during their time in the Warren Village Early Learning Center (ELC). When Zion entered the ELC preschool classroom, he was not talking much for his age. Becky credits Zion’s teachers with helping him catch up on those speech-related developmental milestones. He is talking much more these days. Zoe is a shy girl, and spent much of her time in the ELC playing by herself. When she moved up to a new classroom, she blossomed socially. Now, Zoe can often be found interacting with her teacher and classmates on the playground or during activity time.

Becky knows that the future will be bright for her and her family. She plans to continue her post-secondary education and pursue a degree in the healthcare field. Her current job allows her to save money and work toward becoming financially stable. Becky also has hopes to find permanent housing , because, as she says, “Warren Village is transitional housing. It’s not forever.” Most importantly, she hopes to bring her husband, Zion and Zoe’s father, to the United States from Ethiopia. While she and the kids have the opportunity to visit him, she knows that Zion and Zoe miss their father.

As Becky reflects on her time at Warren Village so far, she shares, “Warren Village is a big support for single parents. They can help not only financially, but if you share your problems, they will give you advice or resources to solve that problem. I meet with my family advocate every month. She is so kind and really wants to help me. She goes above and beyond. While living here, I have gotten my diploma. I started a new job, my dream job. Warren Village helped me to make my dreams come true.”

Support families like Becky’s as they rise to face barriers and challenges. Make a donation today.