Meet Lois Smith, our 2009 BrickStreet Empowerment Award Winner. She is the third of this year’s YWCA Women of Achievement honorees and the third in our 4-week series of blog posts leading up to this inspirational event on February 19.
The Empowerment Award, this year sponsored by BrickStreet Insurance, recognizes and rewards a YWCA program participant who, through great perseverance and with the help of the YWCA, has overcome great obstacles and transformed her life.
In fact, LOIS SMITH has rebuilt her life in more ways than one. This year’s honoree withstood years of abuse from her former spouse. While attending the YWCA Resolve Family Abuse Program’s domestic violence support group, Lois found a place to live that promised a peaceful, safe and supportive environment – the YWCA Alicia McCormick Homes for Battered and Homeless Women and Children. Here, Lois developed a zest for life again. During her months in this transitional housing program, YWCA staff helped Lois find the strength to rebuild her self-esteem, learn how to manage her money, significantly reduce her debt, and secure a full-time job with the state tax department. After enduring a painful divorce, she was re-united with her son – now a sophomore in college.
In addition to securing permanent housing and receiving a promotion at work, Lois recently joined the YWCA Shanklin Center staff as a Residential Aid, where she considers her time with the residents the “highpoint” of her life. Dependable worker, compassionate caregiver, dedicated mother and now financially independent, Lois truly embodies the YWCA’s mission of empowering women.
Hear Lois's inspirational story first hand in her exclusive video interview on the Charleston Gazette's wesite.
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