Mayra’s hope story: “Ever since I came here, I’ve had blessing after blessing”

At The Bowery Mission, Mayra found a safe place to heal and get a fresh start, thanks to friends like you

Mayra endured abuse after moving to the United States for the promise of a better life. Alone and homeless in New York City, she found refuge and support at The Bowery Mission. Here she shares her story in her own words.

My name is Mayra, and I am originally from South America. Some time ago, I met a man while in the United States. He promised me a better life so I left my home country to be with him. Little did I know, the promises were not true and I found myself trapped in a cycle of abuse — physically, mentally and emotionally. I felt bad all the time and very hopeless.

I eventually escaped to New York City, where I arrived alone and homeless. Feeling lost and scared, I searched my phone for help and found The Bowery Mission. At the Mission’s emergency shelter, I talked to a social worker about the abuse I had suffered and she introduced me to the Residential Program for women.

The opportunity for a fresh start

When I first came to the Women’s Center, I was overwhelmed with many emotions. I wanted to cry. I wanted to shout, “Why am I here?” I felt trapped and anxious, and I had a hard time adjusting to the environment. When I thought about my past, I felt angry toward God. I lost my mom at a young age and suffered violence from my father growing up, so I never had much support.

At one point, I had panic attacks where I could barely move, eat or speak. The staff and other clients were so nice. They asked how I was feeling every day and held my hand when I was too afraid to eat. They would sit next to me and cheer me on, saying, “It’s OK, you can do it.”

At The Bowery Mission, I received a lot of support from my counselor and my therapy group. I started to open up about my story and how I was feeling, and we talked together about God. As time went on, I began to realize my past relationship wasn’t healthy for me. I started to move on from the man who hurt me.

A complete transformation

When I think about who I was when I came here and who I am now, I see a huge difference. I learned how to cook and clean. I learned the importance of limits in any relationship, and how to how to set them with other people.

I now keep a journal where I write down reasons to be thankful every day. When I started to reflect on all the blessings in my life, my mindset began to change. I have many things for which I’m grateful — I’m safe and well. I have a roof over my head and food on the table. I found a job where people are friendly and I improve myself every day.

My hope is to graduate from the program. I was a lawyer in my country, and I want to keep studying to get my Master’s degree. My dream is to become an entrepreneur and start my own business.

One year ago, I came here haunted by ghosts from my past. But ever since then I’ve had blessing after blessing. Now I think everything that has happened to me is because God guided me to this place. At the beginning I couldn’t see it, because I had so much anxiety. But with time, I realized just what this place means to me. This place gave me my faith back.

My favorite passage of Scripture is from 1 Corinthians 13: “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” Because without love, what is life? That is the concept of life: love. And I see love at The Bowery Mission every day.