Karen leaves the Mission scared, but not alone

After graduating, Karen is preparing for an exciting new opportunity that will provide the stability she needs to get back on her feet.

Karen is nervous. She’s preparing to leave the Lighthouse after recently graduating from the program, but her excitement of a new beginning is mixed with fear.

“It’s scary and I’m nervous. I don’t want to end up stuck like I was before,” she said. “But I have goals and plans for when I’m there. And I now have people rooting for me.”

Karen knows what it feels like to start over with nothing.

After separating from her husband and losing custody of her children, Karen moved from West Covina to Victor Valley in a U-Haul to take a caretaker position recommended by a friend. Having taken nursing classes, Karen believed the job would be a good fit. Instead, she arrived to find the woman she was hired to care for completely bedridden.

“I felt stuck. I had nowhere else to go and her kids wouldn’t help me take care of her. I had no car, no money, and at the time I didn’t really know anyone,” she said.

For five years, Karen remained stuck. But after an argument with the woman’s family, she was forced to leave immediately. She could only afford one night in a motel. The next day, she found RMA Victor Valley, where she stayed for six months before transferring to the Lighthouse in July 2025.

The transition wasn’t easy.

“I wanted out of here so bad,” Karen admitted. “I didn’t want to feel like I was starting all over and I wanted to have some normalcy again. But I stayed, I graduated and I’m so glad I did.”

Her biggest breakthrough came when staff confronted her about her behavior.

“There was a moment where staff told me I needed to start behaving or I’d get written up or exited from the program,” Karen said. “It was eye-opening. That moment it clicked and I knew I had to turn my life around.”

Since then, Karen has worked to change not only her actions but the way she responds to life’s challenges. Her favorite Bible verse, Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God,” has become a daily reminder.

“Basically what I’ve had to learn is how to sit still, how to listen and how to be obedient. It’s hard, but I take it day by day,” she said.

The program’s classes also helped Karen develop healthier relationships with others.

“I especially loved the class on boundaries; I’ve learned a lot from it, like how to set boundaries and how to respect them. My biggest takeaway is learning that I need to have boundaries with my family and how to do that.”

Now, Karen is preparing for another caretaker position in Victor Valley, this time serving as a companion to a woman whose husband recently passed away. The opportunity includes housing, transportation and a paycheck, things she didn’t have when she first arrived there.

“I’m proud of me and I’m excited,” Karen said. “I know what I’m getting into now and I have people who have helped protect me.”

And this time, she knows she isn’t alone. Her case manager, Lindsey Lopez, helped vet the opportunity and has had the “pleasure” of walking alongside Karen throughout her journey. The two arrived at the Lighthouse within a month of each other and bonded immediately.

“Karen is my first graduate,” Lindsey said. “She’s the first one about to leave the nest. It’s an awesome opportunity. It’s sad but it’s so great. I mean, this is the whole point.”

Karen also plans to finish her associate’s degree in criminal justice, save money, find a place of her own and, most importantly, hopes to reconnect with her adult children, whom she hasn’t spoken to since they were in high school.

Leaving is still scary, but unlike the last time she packed up her life, Karen knows she has something she didn’t have before: a community that believes in her and will continue cheering her on wherever she goes.