When Amy first arrived in Denver, it was under difficult circumstances. Just weeks earlier, she had lost everything she owned—three duffel bags packed with her belongings, including a pregnancy pillow she used every night. She didn’t own much and was devastated when it was taken in an instant during a trip to a Walmart in Lincoln, Nebraska.
“I just felt so defeated,” Amy said. “My stuff was gone. All I had left were the clothes I was wearing.”
Amy turned to Catholic Social Services of Southern Nebraska in Lincoln who helped her secure a bus ticket to Denver so she could get back to her roots in Colorado. She was two months pregnant the day she arrived and hadn’t yet received medical care. Having experienced homelessness for the majority of her adult life, she made it her top priority to find a clinic that would be compassionate to her situation. Catholic Charities’ Marisol Health popped up on Google, and the next thing she knew, she was looking at her baby girl on an ultrasound for the first time.
Amy talked with her Marisol Health case manager about what her life looked like both before and after her pregnancy. On top of her belongings being stolen, she had experienced domestic violence at the hands of the baby’s father and struggled with drug addiction. But now, after arriving in Denver, she was clean and sober, and wanted to keep it that way for the sake of her baby.
“Christy Jo told me about the overnight shelter at Samaritan House. I didn’t even know Marisol Health was connected to a shelter. But I made it right in time to have a bed and dinner at Samaritan House that night. They accepted me, and that’s when everything began to get a little bit easier,” Amy shared.
Marisol Health and Samaritan House are both ministries of Catholic Charities, which serves the entire Front Range and Western Slope at 76 locations. From Fort Collins to south Denver, Greeley to Glenwood Springs, more than 550 Catholic Charities employees work with participants, residents and clients providing a wide range of services.
A few days into her stay at Samaritan House’s overnight shelter, Amy moved upstairs onto the family floor, where she has her own room to prepare for her child.
Now seven months pregnant, Amy continues to go to Marisol Health for all of her medical appointments, where she feels genuinely cared for. Even when they found that the baby is breech, the devoted staff at Marisol Health made Amy feel at ease.
“I’ve been going to Marisol for my check-ups. They’ve been wonderful, offering rides so I don’t have to stress about transportation,” she shared.
Amy recently went on her hospital tour and she is set to deliver her baby girl at Swedish Medical Center in Englewood. The anticipation of meeting her daughter, whom she plans to name Francine Celine, is very exciting and she’s thrilled that the baby is due on Thanksgiving Day.
“I’m going to call her Frank for short. My grandpa’s name was Francis, and I love the name. Plus, I adore Celine Dion, so it’s a little nod to her too,” Amy concluded.
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