This key is the to my Home. But this key represents so much more than that. This key opened up opportunities for me and thousands more like me.

Good evening.

 My name is CHERYL MORAN my 20 year old daughter and I

Live in an apartment located in Union Square Manhattan.

I would like to share with you my life as it was, and as it is now because of this key that was given to me by HELP USA.

I was raised in foster care 3^rd generation. I am a survivor of Domestic Violence my biological Mother a fatality before it had a name. I am a former consumer of the Correctional system. I have been thorough the Family court system as a child, and as a parent. I have been on Public assistance and I am an addict. I spent 17 years of my life homeless. Please, do not mistake my sharing this information with you as me being proud of my past. I made very bad choices, and I accept responsibility and which direction my life took because of my actions.

It can best be described by a line from one of Mr. Scorsese movies.

“Everyman has to go through hell to reach paradise

 Today, I choose not to use. Today, I choose to live differently. I can do so because of many opportunities that have been afforded me by Help USA

Now the road back A STORY OF HOPE AND HELP USA

After my release I was assigned to a facility designed for women involved in the criminal justice system. I was able to regain custody of my daughter.

I commuted to my job earning 7 dollars an hour as a prep cook by bus. I saw a sign for low income housing. I went to the housing coordinator in my shelter and said I want to live there in the new building on 13 Street.

.She said I don’t think they will interview our people. (Formerly incarcerated women)

 In my world NO means, lets negotiate.

She arranged interviews for four families she told us not to mention the history.

 I was in there for about 2 hours. I told the truth!!

 I asked them to give me the opportunity to raise my daughter in a safe place.

 I had never had my own apartment but desperately wanted to give my daughter an opportunity for a good life and future.  I would make a good neighbor,

 If someone would just give me the opportunity.

 Well I was the only one of those four who told the truth that day, and the only one that got the apartment.

On Saturday April 15^th 1995 my daughter and I moved into our home with two beds, a kitchen table, a Dream an opportunity to STERTFRESH.

At the age of thirty four this was the first time I had a piece of paper that said this was my home.

On Monday I went to work and my daughter went to the onsite daycare.

Along with the families came a multitude of problems.

To be in the shelter system you must be on Welfare

 When we moved in, a large percentage of our families were unemployed.

 There were case mangers, employment programs, and advocates all onsite.

 In one of our tenant meetings. We discovered that our children leaving the daycare were having trouble adjusting in regular school; Help teamed up with REACH and opened a charter school in the building.

After two years in Reach I was able to put my daughter back into public School.

 Help opened and after school program that picked her up so I could work.

 I moved on and I got a job as a Life skills trainer working former Consumers

 You will notice that I do not use the phrase X offender. It is an Oxymoron. X never really gets separated from the Offender.

One day I was speaking with Maria Cuomo Kole about strategies to deal with The Welfare Reform Act of 1996.

Hey why aren’t you working for us? We should hire you!

Problem, I am a former consumer of the corrections department. Help had a policy of not hiring former Consumers.

Well Problems are opportunities to be creative.

I went to work for HELP as a Job Developer...

After the contract I was working was over I decided it was time to pursue my dream

I opened my own Not for profit. I mean HOW hard it could be to open a non for profit. Talk about a 12 step program. I have been couple of hundred steps. I bought a fax machine for 50 dollars. Dropped an extra phone line in my house. STARTFRESH NY was born.

So once again I turned to Help USA. Can I rent the empty office space in the Lower Level?

Oh by the way I don’t have any money.

In November 2005 STARTFRESH NY had a home.

Than I did what many Americans with a dream do. Called the bank and asked loans. I bought the computers. My first training was to teach a computer based Customer Service training.  

Today STARTFRESH NY (named for the opportunity that Help USA gave me to start fresh) runs 7 programs.

I am a very fortunate person some people spend virtually there whole life trying to figure out what their purpose is. I know that I was put here and each and every experience that I have gone through has been necessary so that I could help other people.

 To sum up this story I am going to reference to my Daughter’s paper about stereotyping. Behind the glass doors.

 When Help acquired the property and told the community of their intentions, the fight was on. The community agreed Homelessness was indeed a big problem. They would like to help, but not in my backyard. Help kept the faith and continued building.  4 years and countless lawsuits later. Help won and they opened.

Behind the glass doors of HELP USA all over the country there are thriving communities a lawyer, a woman that runs a hospital wing, a man that works in the laundry room, postal workers, carpenters, and yes policemen.

The children of the glass doors. Columbia, Wheaton, and now my daughter is a junior in College.

Without you there would be no opportunity HELP.USA

So Tonight, It is my opportunity to say a personal yet very public thank you.

 To Governor and Ms. Cuomo. Thank you for raising your children with understanding that we are responsible for our world in which we live.

To Governor Cuomo for the life of my best friend John Restivo who was exonerated by DNA released from prison in 2003 after serving 18 years of a sentence for a murder he did not commit.

He is alive today because you vetoed the death penalty..

To Andrew Cuomo and Maria Cuomo Cole for the vision, the dream, the promise, and the continued commitment.

Thank you Help USA for all of the opportunities

 For giving me a home, a job, raising my daughter, and now helping me to fulfill my dream to give back to a world that has given me so much.

To Elliot my friend first then my accountant for teaching not to just play CDs but open one

And, my daughter the reason I breathe who has sacrificed so much of Mommy time.

I live my life to make a better world for you

.

To quote a woman I have a great deal of admiration and respect for “there is no coincidences people are put in each others path for a reason.”

Yes Maria Cuomo Cole you are right. I was put here for a reason.

To be the voice for those that would be silenced. A helping hand up is not a hand out. I commit to continue to   be that voice for the thousands of Homeless children that will go to sleep in shelters tonight for their voices, are seldom heard...