So often, I talk to the men and women that now call Orange County Rescue Mission home, and they recall a “moment of truth”. It is a moment that they are forced to make a monumental decision: to continue living in the brokenness and chaos they are in or to leave all they know and start over.

This moment is often filled with fear: Where will I go? What will I do? How will I survive?

But for those that choose to step forward courageously, there is new life and freedom to be found.

This is Sonia’s story.

Sonia had reached her moment of truth.

She and her kids had just had a wonderful visit with her mom and sister, and now it was time to go home.

But something held Sonia back. She couldn’t face returning to the dingy house they were living in. She was pregnant and the thought of bringing a new baby into that filthy environment just made her sick. “I was pregnant and it wasn’t clean enough to bring the baby into that place,” Sonia recalls.

In a flash, she made her decision. She wasn’t going to go back.

Not to that squalid house. And definitely not to the neglectful father of her kids. Her pain and hurt from him was suffocating. There was just no other way. She and her kids deserved better.

As the thought raced around in her head, Sonia’s determination grew. But then another thought gripped her with fear: Where are we going to go?

Without a stable home, Sonia and her kids went from motel to motel, trying to bring just enough with them to survive. Day by day, Sonia did her best to keep a roof over their heads, put food on the table and make sure her kids went to school. But Sonia knew she could not raise her kids living day to day in motels.

Sonia heard about Orange County Rescue Mission through her sister. “The biggest blessing is the stability. I don’t have to think about, oh my gosh, it’s Friday, do I have to worry about getting another room?” Sonia remembers.

At the Mission, Sonia and all of her kids are thankful for the brand-new start they received. Sonia is excited about all of it. “Reaching for my goals, going through job search, putting my money in the bank and planning for my kids’ future . . . it’s a big burden off my shoulders,” Sonia shares.

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