After Kimberly told us her story, she moved into her very own apartment. She is settled and comfortable.
Living by the River:
“My name is Kimberly Gray. I am 55. I am from California. I came to Lawrence for a two-week vacation, to have my baby meet the grandparents. That was twenty-two years ago. I have been here ever since.
A few years ago, my husband passed away, we were together for nineteen years. On the day of his funeral, I came home and our house had gotten broken into. He had a collection of guns and stuff in our basement some young kids broke in and stole all of it. And everything just got like really worse.
I lost everything. I started living at the river.
After losing someone you love, and you end up living on the streets you fall off the wagon, start using drugs, and you don’t really live, it just gets worse every day.
On the streets, you had to go out there and beg for money. You know, everybody begs, borrows and steals from each other.
It’s freezing out there in the woods. So, you had to make little camps to keep warm.
Now, I carry my bag with me everywhere. It was hard living on the river during the summer time. I would slep underneath the trees and stuff like that.
One day, I flagged down a police officer and they brought me here, to the Lawrence Community Shelter.”
“This fall starts up another busy season at the Lawrence Community Shelter. We’re already planning for cold weather where our guest numbers increase. Of course, our planning for the future is ongoing, too.
We are working to implement our Auxiliary Shelter plan to reduce the chances of anyone would be turned away to struggle for survival during a long, frigid winter night.
With your support families and individuals experiencing homeless have the chance to be safe and fed, as well as trained and inspired. With gratitude,
