This presentation was created for Family Promise of Ontario County, which helps homeless families reach self-sufficiency. Mary-Kate's full story was detailed in the Finger Lakes Times in September of 2016.

1. Meet Mary-Kate
Story by Joy Underhill

2. Her life is full of words.
The word Love
tattooed on the tender skin
of her forearm

3. Her boys’ names, Dallasand DJ,
written in her heart
The words echoed by the reporter
when she told her story.

4. A story that began with
temporary housing,
a dirty motel room,
and the man
who pushed his way in.

5. Words told to the 911operator,
the police, the nurse
and finally, after a year,
a guilty plea.
A door closed
except for the nightmares.

6. She doesn’t like the fights and
break-ins at her new place
or that her kids are too quiet
sometimes.

7. She puts more words on her walls:
Survivor
Fighter
Warrior
and finds one peaceful hour
at a Sunday service.

8. And every day, she gets a call or text
It happened to me too, they say,
and she listens, consoles

9. On sunny days, she takes the kids to the lake
where they all remember what it means to be a family.

10. This is all she wants:
A safe place for her children to grow
A job where she helps others like her
A way to embrace the unspoken word
in her eyes
Hope.

11. www.familypromiseontariocounty.org