(by Karen Carman) This past December, Hope Gardens opened its doors on the East Side of Buffalo. Hope Gardens is a newly built, 20-unit, permanent supportive housing project designed to meet the needs of women who have experienced chronic homelessness.
Women who have been chronically homelessness often have social histories steeped in trauma that frequently begins with childhood sexual/physical abuse and continues into adulthood with domestic violence, rape, physical assaults, and abuse. As one might imagine, this life-long abuse results in the lack of trust for others, post-traumatic stress disorder, mental illness, and in many cases chemical addiction.
One of the new Hope Garden residents, whom we shall call “Anna,” offers a story of a life derailed. She began her career in one of the helping professions. She joined the armed forces and served in Operation Desert Storm. After returning to civilian life, she married and had a son.
