Portfolio Category: Stories of Impact

Ryan saw his dad push his mom around so many times he lost track. He was scared of his father but was also angry at his mom.  “Why did she have to make him angry,” he wondered? “I thought it was all her fault until my father started hitting my brother and me. He would…

“Take this blanket and sleep outside.” Six months into her marriage and thousands of miles from her family in New York, Shruthi was afraid. She had no community in Seattle, no family, no friends, and no hope. Shruthi was 24 when she first met Raj; struck by his charismatic personality and intelligence, she was flattered…

Abigail sent this letter to us and we wanted to share it with you. Today, I sat alone in my apartment, listening to the silence. My son was at a friend’s house. A picture on the wall was crooked, but that was okay. The bowl from my oatmeal was still in the sink, but that…

Vera grew up in Russia, and when she was 18, she met Jared at a club one evening; he was in Moscow on a work assignment. They talked for hours, and he told her of his life in Seattle. “It sounded so exciting,” Vera recalled, “And I was tired for living at home with my…

Camila came to the US in 2005 with her husband, Marcos, and their baby Samuel. She was hoping for a fresh start for her family. A year after they arrived, Marcos shot Camila before turning the gun on himself—taking his own life while holding their two-year-old son. Camila survived after weeks of being in a…

Bianca had just fled from her abusive husband when she called New Beginnings’ Helpline. Desperate for a place for her and her twin daughters to stay, Bianca was relieved to learn that we were able to offer her an extended hotel stay. As Bianca worked to rebuild her life, you provided her with the help…

This is an excerpt from a letter written by Yolanda to the staff at New Beginnings. When I think back to the first time I called New Beginnings, I was in the worst situation I had ever been in in my life. I was beyond terrified. I had been strangled, beaten, and bruised. I had…

Carla moved into New Beginnings’ housing with her mom and her brother after they fled an abusive relationship. Each move her family made involved changing schools, and she struggled to make new friends. Carla also started to lose confidence in herself. She told our Youth and Family Advocate, “The girls don’t like to play with me, and…

For Henry, sexual, emotional, and physical abuse were a normal part of his childhood while growing up in rural Pennsylvania. Abused and then abandoned by his father, Henry watched his mother bring home a series of boyfriends, most of them impatient and angry. Henry left for college in Seattle, happy to be free from his…