In 2020, a year of turmoil around the globe, Darline was enduring her own personal nightmare.
She was pregnant with her first child and married to an abusive man. His physical violence only worsened as her pregnancy progressed.
Darline had no job and no family near her home in New York. The situation felt impossible. “I was devastated. I didn’t know how I would make it,” Darline recalls, “but I knew I had to leave for me and for my son.”
She was eight months pregnant when her husband hit her for what would be the very last time.
You helped Family & Children’s Agency (FCA) provide the resources and care that made it possible for Darline to overcome an abusive relationship and build a safe, stable future for herself and her child.
Your Mother’s Day gift of $20, $50, or even $200 today will make sure more mothers, children, families, and other neighbors get the help they need when they are scared, traumatized, alone, and in danger.
After Darline made the brave decision to escape her abuser, she moved to Connecticut to stay with her sister, who helped connect her to FCA. With your help, we provided Darline and her newborn baby, Josiah, with the clothing, food, and diapers they urgently needed.
But there were other challenges that this resilient mother would have to address to successfully restart her life, including a serious bout of depression that sapped her energy and made caring for a baby feel impossible.
Your generosity helped Darline’s FCA case worker, Jossie, get her the clinical support necessary to improve her mental health and well-being. With Jossie’s support, Darline engaged with an FCA mental health clinician, enrolled in classes, and secured a full-time job where she still works.
Your gifts provide parents with life-changing FCA services like our Child & Family Development home visiting program. Darline learned about child development and established a daily routine that made life with her son easier and more fulfilling for both mother and baby.
Today, Darline’s life looks nothing like it did five years ago. She has a safe home, a happy and healthy preschooler, and a full-time job to support them both. Because of friends like you, Darline is independent and self-sufficient. Josiah is thriving and will soon enroll in kindergarten.
There are so many families like Darline’s — women and children in heartbreaking circumstances who just need a little help to turn their lives around. Please share your love and compassion with them this Mother’s Day by rushing your gift to FCA.
