Shawna's rehabilitation fund

Hello,

Many of you know I have a younger sister, Shawna, who has spent the past ten years struggling with drug addiction and mental illness.

After losing our mother to cancer at the age of 14, Shawna quickly got mixed-up into drugs and thus, a very long struggle began. After losing her two children to the court system for crimes related to her drug use, she spent the past eighteen months in Huron Valley Women's Correctional Facility in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

After going through a very deep depression, Shawna decided her only choice was to get better or lose her life to drug use. Shortly after entering prison, she applied for and was accepted into a strict rehab and counceling program within the correctional facility called RSAT.  (Residential Substance Abuse Treatment Program) After years of struggling, she finally started to make a change in her life- a change I could see clearly and finally helped me to regain some hope. She graduated from the program and was released from prison on September 9th of this year. Since then, she has been in a state funded rehabilitation program in Kalamazoo Michigan called KPEP.  http://www.kpep.com/pages_/home_.cfm She was recently hired at a local resteratunt for a waitressing job and has started getting an income and hoped to stay at KPEP until she had enough money for her own apartment.

She was just told today by her parole officer that the state has decided to cut her funding and no longer house her at KPEP. She has now become desperate to find a safe home away from drugs and violence to support her rehabilitation.

She has found temporary housing through another local Kalamazoo program called, Open Doors. http://www.opendoorskalamazoo.org/waystogive.html
But otherwise is homeless and this is yet another temporary place to sleep.

Right now, Shawna needs stability in a permanent home and a steady start- one that my family does not have the means to provide her with on our own.

I am reaching- out and asking for any donation you may be able to make to assist in getting a security deposit and first month's rent for Shawna to have a permanent home. As well as a small head- start towards basic furniture, work clothes and toiletries so that she can continue to have access to local rehab programs and Narcotics Anonymous meetings without the stress of homelessness.

My intention is to manage the money earned in this account to help support her in recovery. If you can help in any way, your kindness would be sincerely appreciated.

Thank you for your time.

Dawn Wilson