Five years ago, Nika began a remarkable journey. As a single mother working long hours at a fast-food restaurant, she connected with Charlotte Family Housing after an eviction. During the program, she set ambitious goals: repair her credit score, build savings, advance in her career, and work toward homeownership.
Today, Nika has achieved these goals and more. She’s doubled her income as an assistant manager, built strong relationships with her coworkers, saved consistently, and is participating in the Habitat for Humanity homeownership program.
“I’m almost done with this Habitat program… They’re fixing to build me a house for me and my son. Being in this program just really, really, really helped me,” she shares with pride.
In summer 2022, Nika needed surgery that left her unable to work for several weeks. The financial strain and uncertainty triggered intense anxiety, and she spiraled into depression.
“When I had that surgery, I was down, and I wasn’t used to not moving around and not doing things on my own and having to call people to help me,” Nika explains. “I wasn’t used to that, so that kind of drove me into depression.”
That experience ultimately revealed her own strength and resilience. With the help of inpatient support, she found healthy coping mechanisms, began attending therapy regularly, reconnected with her faith community, and discovered the power of self-care.
When asked about feeling “mighty” Nika points to that specific moment in her life: “After I came home from the hospital, and I got my son back, and we started spending more time with each other, and I went back to work and doing things.” Facing such an immense challenge helped her see her own inner strength and showed her the strength that comes from embracing support.
The pride she feels in overcoming that difficult period continues to fuel her forward. Recovery taught Nika that she is stronger and more resilient than she ever imagined. Through support from her social worker and her love for her son, she found the strength to keep going even when it seemed impossible.
“My social worker used to tell me ‘you’ve been through so much and you work so hard, and you got this’ just giving me motivation, and my son also… I love my son to death. I’d do anything for him. That right there kept me grounded and kept me pushing forward always.”
This story is part of our “Mighty Like A Mother” series celebrating Mother’s Day and honoring the strength of mothers in our community.
Nika and her social worker Marissa