Lacie Green joined THC’s Rapid Rehousing in the fall of 2014 along with her four daughters after living doubled-up with family and friends for years. In the short time she has been with THC, she has gained fulltime employment with Urban City Management and is pursuing her undergraduate studies at Trinity University. We are thrilled to honor her as our Client Achievement Awardee this year at our upcoming Living in the City annual auction and reception.

We sat down with Lacie to learn more about her life and family. This is what she had to say…

Tell us about yourself and your family. My family consists of Makenzie M. Green, 10, Lauren B. Green, 9, Morgan M. Green, 8, Landan B. Green, 6, and myself, Lacie M. Green, 32. We are strong women who are working towards a bright, happy, healthy, and promising future.

What brought you to THC? Being homeless. My husband put me and my daughters out of our house. He took everything we owned and gave it to his other children and family. I had nowhere to go. THC was a program I heard about while staying in a transitional home. I was all out of options so I decided to give it a try.

What does THC mean to you? Family, Courage, Strength, Wisdom, Help, Support, Stability, everything. THC has given me back something the devil tried to steal from me. Losing EVERYTHING that I knew as “my normal” was taken away from me in the matter of minutes. THC helped me find “my new normal” and gave me the strength to keep moving forward.

What has stable housing helped you do? When the girls and I were homeless it was the worst feeling that I could ever have. My mind would be going 70 mph all day. I couldn’t focus on anything but “how can I get my babies a home of their own.” Even in my sleep my mind would be telling me there are so many other things I could be doing besides sleeping. Stable housing has helped quiet my restless mind. It’s like I can sleep at night.  Not all of my problems are solved but having a place to share with my daughters has taken a ton of weight off me. As long as my girls are happy and they can enjoy their childhood together in their own home I’m happy.

What motivates you to work so hard? My daughters. Being homeless and not being able to provide their basic needs brought me to a low that I wouldn’t even wish on my enemy. Hearing my daughters ask questions that I was too embarrassed to answer did something to me. I’m not able to buy them the world (not yet) but it’s a lot better than where I was at. Having a room with a bed, even the girls having toys are BIG things for us.  I’m grateful for everything that I have in my life at this point. Going back isn’t an option. So working for them is motivation enough.

What do you like to do for fun? The girls and I do a lot of things for fun. Our favorite thing is hanging with my Nana. Nana is my grandmother and the girl’s great grandmother. She is my favorite person. She’s always there for me and the girls. I’ve always been able to call and cry on her shoulder. Spending time with her means everything to me and the girls.

Talk about an inspiring or transformative moment in your life. The day I met TJ Adams Sr. was the best day ever. I had been looking for an apartment for about 5 months. I’d seen some guys working on a building off Minnesota Avenue and thought I’d go and ask how I could go about getting information in the unit that they were working on. To make a long story short they gave me Mr. TJ Adams’ number. The day he called and told me to meet him so he could show me my unit was the best day ever. I didn’t even have to look at it. I walked in the front door and told him it was mine. I didn’t need to look at it. That day changed me. To go from living with my best friend and her 3 (grown) children to having my very own space was a blessing that I will never forget.

Join us at Living in the City on May 18^th at the Mead Center for American Theater to honor Lacie for her achievements and to raise support for the over 500 families that THC serves!