Help Vanessa get Back on her Feet

My name is Vanessa Peoples and I am a mother of three children living in Aurora, Colorado. You may have seen my story on CBS Sunday Morning.

During a large family picnic one day, my 2 year old son strayed away from me and started to follow my cousin to her car. In a matter of seconds, a woman nearby saw my son, presumed he was alone, grabbed him and called the police. I quickly approached the woman and explained it was my son but she refused to give him back, and insisted we wait for the police.

The police cited me for child endangerment and abuse and child services showed up at my house with the police a few weeks later. I will never forget that day. Police came inside my home, pointed guns at me, refused to let my mother be with her grandchildren, and eventually grabbed me by my throat, shoved me to the ground, and dislocated my shoulder. They then hogtied me up and carried me outside like an animal with my hands and feet tied together, in front of my mother and three children who could hear me screaming for help.

Since then my whole life has changed. Not only did my children have to see their mother treated that way, but now, because my son wandered away for less than a minute, I have issues finding work and housing. I was charged with child endangerment and took a plea deal because I didn't have the money to fight the charges and didn't want to take the risk of being in jail away from my children. I can’t get a job in many areas with this conviction on my records. I also have trouble getting housing. I am stuck in a cycle I can't get out of on my own.

I need help to get back on my feet. My three children and I live with my mother now and I want to find a place to call my own home. I want to have a stable job to support my family and be able to afford preschool for my young child so I can work. I have a college degree, but I would like to go back to school to finish my internship for a nursing career. My children need help I can’t afford as well. My children are still traumatized from what happened and what they saw that day. I want nothing more than to put them in a mentoring and tutoring program for the extra support they need, but I can’t afford the programs. I just want to be able to provide for my children and move forward with my life.

Any help reaching these goals would be deeply appreciated.

Thank you,

Vanessa