“If I’m gonna die, I want to die in my own bed.”
Mae (called ‘Mama Mae’ by friends) experienced homelessness in both Tennessee and North Carolina, but her experience with Homeward Bound is the best she’s had. She recalls feeling like she was treated as less than human when she tried to get help in Tennessee.
Mae said, “It’s very hard to live on the street. I’m a borderline diabetic– I could die out there. If I’m gonna die, I wanna die in my own bed.”
She had been in the Room in the Inn program and then when the pandemic hit she moved over to the Red Roof Inn and stayed there for four months. She kept to herself and mostly stayed in her room. She and her case manager, Flint, submitted applications to five or six different places before she got her current apartment.
Mae hopes she never has to move again because her new place feels like home to her. She’s enjoying having a place for all of her things and is hoping to purchase items for donation that will benefit other folks who have or are experiencing homelessness. Mae’s beloved dog, Bella, died shortly before she entered housing and she is hoping to get a new dog soon with the help of her case manager, Flint.