Homelessness: A Reality That Could Knock on Any Door
“I do have a degree. I am educated, but even someone who is educated might fall on hard times.”
Ebony Lucas grew up in a family of educators. From an early age, she knew that education created opportunities—but those were limited in the small town she called home in South Carolina. They were even more limited when she became a mother at the age of 18.
“With me being a teenage mom, I was not expected to get a college degree. I was not expected to thrive or achieve anything,” said Lucas. “I was a teenage statistic.”
That didn’t stop her from furthering her education. With the help of her family, Lucas graduated from Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., with a degree in Elementary Education. She taught in North Carolina, eventually settling in Charlotte, where she gave birth to her second child. Diagnosed with autism at the age of three, her son faced special needs that led to difficulties at school.
Her son was told he could no longer ride the bus, which was his only way to school, so Lucas resigned from her job to care for him. With no income flowing in and Lucas's savings drying out, she and her son faced something no mother wants to explain—homelessness.
“It was a new experience for me. Not only was it new, but I also had to bring my son along,” she said. “I was trying to figure out – Will he understand what was going on? Would he think that this was a long vacation? How do I explain to him that we are literally homeless.”
Lucas's social worker suggested The Salvation Army for assistance.
“I was skeptical at first because I was like, really, someone is going to help me. Because I have been on my own for so long,” said Lucas. “But I went down to the shelter to do an entry assessment, and they [Center of Hope] got the ball rolling.”
The Salvation Army enrolled Lucas in the Rapid Rehousing Program, where residents work with the shelter’s social workers to find and maintain permanent housing. The organization placed the mother and son in a hotel room leased by The Salvation Army, where they stayed for eight months. During that time, Lucas received assistance from her social worker, and she had access to counseling, food pantries, and laundry services – free of charge. The Salvation Army also helped pay the upfront fees to help Lucas secure an apartment for her and her son.
Today, Lucas and her son are embracing their new home, transforming their space with new decorations and cherished items that were tucked away for nearly a year.
“They [The Salvation Army] were committed to getting the end goal, and the end goal was to get me in a place that I was comfortable in,” she said.
Lucas continues to maintain her home and found a school that caters to her son’s needs. She also released a children’s book, Dear Little Black Prince, inspired by her son. Next, she plans to attend law school to become a legal ally to others.
She thanks The Salvation Army’s Center of Hope staff for helping her get back on her feet during a traumatic time. Most importantly, she thanks God for giving her the strength to power through this unexpected experience.
“I always like to say, sometimes your biological father may not do, but your heavenly father always will,” she said. “I feel that everything that I went through, strangely enough, was necessary. There are situations where you are one paycheck away from being homeless. And It’s okay to say, ‘Hey, I am struggling.’ Some people will turn their eyes and say ‘oh well, that’s not my problem.’ But those people don’t outweigh those who do [help].”