Overcoming homelessness

NEVANS-PEDERSON, mARY. Telegraph - Herald [Dubuque, Iowa] 25 Jan 2010:

A.1.
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"I'd never been in such a situation. It was tough to go in to a shelter with my kids, but they were so
welcoming," [Smith] said. The little family unit bunked down in one of the tiny curtained alcoves for
two months, during which Smith met with a shelter adviser weekly.
"I didn't know anything about Dubuque. Without those meetings and the guidance they gave me, it
would have just been a place to lay my head."
"They assumed I was from the projects of Chicago and was on housing (vouchers). They lied to me
about apartments. They thought they knew me before they gave me a chance," said Smith, who often
cried herself to sleep after particularly nasty encounters with what she decries as "their own
ignorance."

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Tycheliea 'Tai' Smith Age: 29. Residence: Dubuque. Family: Son, Devon, 11, in fifth grade at Prescott
Elementary School and daughter, Aaliyah, 2. Occupation: Full-time student at NICC, part-time
receptionist at Medical Associates Clinic and newest member of the Opening Doors board of directors.
Eight months ago, Tycheliea Smith was huddled in a homeless shelter in an unfamiliar city with her
two children, wondering how her life had spiraled so far down.
But the spunky 29-year-old was determined not to let hardships and public opinion define her nor
determine her life's path.
Today, "Tai" Smith's existence is worlds away from that low point in her life. She has a job. She is in
college. She has her own apartment. And she is serving on the board overseeing that same shelter.
Smith credits her turnaround in part to the generous hospitality she received at Teresa Shelter and the
unwavering support she got later at Maria House. At the same time, the head of both shelters credits
Smith's pluck and prowess as reasons she has succeeded against daunting odds.

"She is a strong woman, very driven," said Michelle Brown, executive director of Opening Doors, which
operates the two facilities. When Smith stabilized her life, Brown asked her to be on the Opening
Doors board of directors. Smith will attend her first meeting in February.
Smith found herself homeless and penniless in Dubuque last May, after leaving an "unhealthy,
emotionally abusive" marriage and life in a Minneapolis suburb. Desperate, she called the Teresa
Shelter for women and children.
"I'd never been in such a situation. It was tough to go in to a shelter with my kids, but they were so
welcoming," Smith said. The little family unit bunked down in one of the tiny curtained alcoves for two
months, during which Smith met with a shelter adviser weekly.
"I didn't know anything about Dubuque. Without those meetings and the guidance they gave me, it
would have just been a place to lay my head."
In July, Smith was able to land a coveted transitional housing slot at Maria House. Smith, Devon, 11,
and Aaliyah, 2, now had two rooms. Her weekly advising sessions there concentrated on building up
her battered self-esteem.
"I started to feel more confident and I found my own voice," she said. She also enrolled in businessmanagement classes at Northeast Iowa Community College. Five months later, she found a small
apartment she could afford and a job as a receptionist at Medical Associates Clinic.
"Now I'm a totally different person. I came out of the awful experience such a better, stronger person
and closer to God," said Smith, who hopes to land a job in health care management specializing in
physical therapy.
Smith doesn't mince words when talking about the many instances of direct and oblique discrimination
she has encountered in Dubuque.
"Coming from the Twin Cities with many different cultures, I was in culture shock here. I didn't know
there were still places left that were so white," she said.
Smith quickly found out that many Dubuquers lumped her into a broad stereotype.
"They assumed I was from the projects of Chicago and was on housing (vouchers). They lied to me
about apartments. They thought they knew me before they gave me a chance," said Smith, who often

cried herself to sleep after particularly nasty encounters with what she decries as "their own
ignorance."
Smith is confident her example proves a point.
"I hope I'm the person who will change attitudes about a whole group of people."
Neighbors is an occasional feature of the Telegraph Herald. If you know someone who would be a good
candidate for a neighbors story, write to the City Editor, 801 Bluff St., P.O. Box 688, Dubuque, IA
52004-0688, or
e-mail kbrown@wcinet.com.
Word count: 629
(Copyright (c) 2010 Telegraph-Herald.)

Indexing (details)
Cite
Title
Overcoming homelessness
Author
NEVANS-PEDERSON, mARY
Publication title
Telegraph - Herald
First page
A.1
Publication year
2010
Publication date
Jan 25, 2010
Year
2010
Publisher
Telegraph Herald
Place of publication
Dubuque, Iowa

Country of publication
United States
Publication subject
General Interest Periodicals--United States
ISSN
1041293X
Source type
Newspapers
Language of publication
English
Document type
News
ProQuest document ID
368872460
Document URL
http://ezproxy.lib.ryerson.ca/login?
url=http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.lib.ryerson.ca/docview/368872460?accountid=13631
Copyright
(Copyright (c) 2010 Telegraph-Herald.)
Last updated
2011-10-23
Database
ProQuest Newsstand