Wendy is one of His Hands patients who lived in constant fear of the other shoe dropping.
When you meet Wendy one of the things that you will learn within minutes is that she loves her children and would do anything for them. She has an amazing smile and she is one of the most resilient, hard-working people you will ever meet.
A hard worker
Growing up, Wendy came from a family that was rich in love but limited in financial means. She learned from a very early age to work hard and to prepare for when “the other shoe would drop.”
When Wendy was in her third semester of college, she became pregnant. Instead of dropping out, Wendy returned to school just five weeks after giving birth to her son who was born premature. She later went on to finish college and get a full-time job. When Wendy’s son was five she gave birth to her second son who was later diagnosed with developmental and mental health disorders. Around the same time, she was diagnosed with diabetes. Nevertheless, Wendy continued to persevere and work to provide for her family.
The proverbial “shoe” dropped
She worked until the other shoe finally dropped. Arriving to work early one morning, she tripped over a rolled up all-weather mat and suffered a severe injury to her right wrist and forearm. During her recovery she suffered complications. Meanwhile, her employer eliminated her position. This left Wendy unemployed and weighed down by significant medical expenses. She soon faced the possibility of homelessness.
Wendy’s former in-laws invited her and her sons to move in with them. Thanks to their generosity, Wendy was able to get back on her feet. Once fully recovered from her injury, she landed a solid full-time job, found an apartment, and began to rebuild her life. Now, her home is a refuge of sorts. Even with very little to share, she gives what she can and opens her door to children. Wendy says her personal ministry is to help the young people who have been cast off by others, helping them improve their lives.
The struggle to make ends meet
Although she has a solid job and health insurance, Wendy still struggles to make ends meet. Her health plan requires her to pay out of pocket for medications. Her diabetes medications alone cost $1,300 per month – more than rent, food or any of her other basic needs. So, Wendy decided to feed her family and stopped taking her insulin.
The result was rapidly declining health and a fear that she wouldn’t survive. It was then that Wendy came to His Hands for the first time…
Hope through His Hands
Jennifer, our diabetes educator, immediately starting working with Wendy, helping her with the tools she needed to improve her health. With prescription assistance to provide her insulin, diabetes education, and lot of hard work, Wendy began to see significant improvements in her health. She began to think, “This might actually work.”
Today Wendy continues to work towards improving her health, but still fears the other shoe will drop. That is why I am writing today. I want to be able to reassure Wendy that His Hands will always be there to help and that she no longer needs to live in fear. Even more than that, I want to be able to assure each of the remarkable men and women who walk through our doors that they too can have hope.
Staying healthy is hard, even with prescription assistance and medical care from our team. Wendy’s diabetes continues to be difficult to manage. BUT, she has hope and that means something.
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