Para leer este mensaje en Español, por favor visita:http://eepurl.com/bjIHVjIn celebration of 10 years of service, PASOs is proud to share the third in a series of ten stories highlighting our work in South Carolina. We invite you to share your own PASOs story via our Facebook page.
Overcoming Hardships
It’s been nearly two years since Luisa’s partner had to return to his country, leaving Luisa to parent two school-aged sons by herself. Juggling the responsibilities of caring for her two children and providing for the family, Luisa was unable to prioritize her own health needs. Hyperthyroidism was causing Luisa to struggle to maintain a healthy weight, and her condition left her feeling restless and unable to sleep well. To further compound the issue, a language barrier and lack of health insurance made the problems seem impossible to overcome.
In early 2014, PASOs Coastal Plain (Pee Dee) Program Coordinator Jenny Levasseur stepped in to help. Although Jenny’s initial goal was to increase Luisa’s access to medical care, she quickly recognized that Luisa faced challenges that complicated her health problems, including substandard housing and inadequate schooling for her children. Luisa would not be able to focus on improving her health without first addressing the social factors that were causing her stress.
Through advocacy efforts and support provided by the PASOs team, Luisa has secured safe, affordable housing. A local church also became involved, helping Luisa to complete home repairs and to build a functioning shower for the family. Her children are registered in a nearby school, and Luisa is now able to focus on her own health needs. Jenny continues to provide the support that Luisa needs in order to become fully self-sufficient, and Luisa plans to improve her English language skills so that she can help others to do the same.
PASOs is a community-based organization whose vision is a healthy South Carolina with a healthy Latino community. PASOs provides education, family support services, organizational capacity building and community leadership development.
