A Loving Mom’s Top Priority – Staying Together

This story was written by United Way of Greater Cleveland and reprinted with permission

When Mellisa Cody’s hours at her retail job were reduced to eight hours a week, she was forced to make a difficult decision regarding the life that she and her 6-year-old son Ahjay were living. She made arrangements to move in with a family member and gave up their apartment.

That arrangement did not work out, and she found herself and Ahjay moving from place to place, staying with friends or other family members. And on some of the worst days, sleeping in their car.

A friend suggested that Mellisa call United Way’s 211/First Call for Help, which provided her with a list of area shelters. Mellisa was reluctant to contact the shelters, as she worried that she and Ahjay would be separated. But fortunately, she found the Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) of Cleveland, now known as Family Promise of Greater Cleveland.

Just one day after entering, Mellisa and Ahjay had a warm, safe place to spend each night, along with daily use of the Family Center, where they had access to laundry facilities, computers, social workers and more. Each day, volunteers provide transportation from the churches and synagogues offering overnight accommodations to the family center, as well as to the schools that children have been attending all along.

Next step – moving forward

“I knew that if I could just find a better job, we’d be fine,” said Mellisa. “I had some good education and work experience that would work to my advantage, and I took advantage of the lifeskills offerings where volunteers teach life skills including how to achieve financial and residential stability, interviewing, and resume writing.”

A volunteer knew of an opening for a receptionist at Bioenterprise, and thanks to the help from JumpStart and her previous experience, Mellisa got the job. She was then in a position to begin to pay off balances on utility bills and find a permanent home (which she did via the Cleveland Housing Network) and furnishings from Welcome Home.

Within just six months, Mellisa was promoted at work, where she is now the receptionist and assistant to a physician. She’s also taking classes at Cuyahoga Community College with the goal of becoming a CPA; and Ahjay is thriving, doing well at school and enjoying time at home. Most recently, Malissa has married and added a new baby girl to their family.