Quena's Story: Invisible No More

 Quena spent much of her life feeling invisible – giving everything to others and getting nothing in return. In this raw and honest episode, she shares her journey through abandonment, trauma, addiction, and ultimately, transformation. 

From walking the streets to walking into Atlanta Mission, Quena's story is one of courage, healing, and rediscovered purpose. Now, she’s not just seen – she’s shining. 

You’ll also hear from Telicia Maxwell, Director of My Sister’s House, as she offers powerful insight into what it truly takes to rebuild trust, restore dignity, and support women on the path to lasting change

Transcript

Quena Full Episode_Audio 
 

Quena: You're here but nobody noticed it. I was doing everything for everybody and then nobody really understand that I'm giving, but y'all taking and nobody dared to give to me. 'cause that's the other reason I got to the point where I was, I start to the very unwanted like. Used interviews and I don't like being used, so now it's like, God put me in a place where I can show that love and I get it back and people appreciate it. 

Rachel: Welcome to Unseen Atlanta and Atlanta Mission Podcast, where we shine the light on some of the city's toughest issues. We are sharing true stories from real people who are facing homelessness and addiction. We're also gonna share insights from experts who are gonna give us some context to those issues. 

Rachel: I'll be your host, Rachel Reynolds.  

Jonathan: And I'm Jonathan Miller, your co-host. So, Rachel, today we're gonna be sharing Queen's story. You'll just hear a story, um, where so much was taken from her. Um. But she found restoration, she found redemption. Um, and that's what you're gonna hear today.  

Rachel: Yeah. We hope you enjoy. 

Jonathan: Let's dive in.  

Rachel: So tell us a little bit about you growing up.  

Quena: Well, I grew up with my great-grandparents. Uh, they, we see, they got me when I was seven days old, weren't they? Yeah.  

Rachel: What happened with that?  

Quena: From what I heard was, I think my mother was on alcohol bed and my daddy was doing, um, drugs and they left me in the house. 

Quena: So my granddad came, wanted to see the baby when they got there, the baby was there, which is me, was there by herself, saw a diaper and just crying. So they packed the baby up and took them, took her home, and I was there the whole time. With my oldest sister.  

Rachel: And so your older sister, and you were raised by your grandparents? 

Quena: Yeah, my  

Rachel: great-grandparents. Your great-grandparents? Yes. Okay. And what was, what was your childhood like?  

Quena: It was amazing. 'cause I was a spoil brat, my great granddaddy.  

Rachel: So you lived up to, you lived up to your name? Yes. You  

Quena: know, at first I didn't live my name. I was a little bit. You were a  

Rachel: little  

Quena: bit, yes. 

Quena: Okay. That's what they called you? Yes. What were you small? They said when I was there I was real little. They kept me in the drawer. Like the nightstand drawer? Yeah. I was so little. So that was my good name. So yeah.  

Rachel: So how many of you lived in the house?  

Quena: It was me, my oldest sister, and my three cousins and my great-grandparents. 

Rachel: And they raised all of you guys?  

Quena: Yes. 'cause my cousin's mom had died.  

Rachel: Okay.  

Quena: A year before I was born, so at first my cousin mom and them had me, and then when she died, we all went there.  

Rachel: Did Was your mom in the picture at  

Quena: all when you were growing up? Yeah, she was there. She called constantly. She came over. 

Quena: She would bring us like food stamps and stuff, and I just. Was at the point where I thought she didn't want me. So I couldn't accept that from her. I would never call her mother. I just called her by her name Sue, when she was on her death bed. She was like, she called one day and she was like, this sister, my baby, um, Queena like this, her, she was like, how you do? 

Quena: She had said she, I was doing, I said, I'm fine. How are you? She said, I do better is my baby called me mama at least once. So I'm like, okay. Hey mama, how are you? So that's the only time I called her that.  

Jonathan: How did that feel to call her mom?  

Quena: Weird.  

Jonathan: Yeah. Not natural, because I  

Quena: knew it wasn't real. Mm. So like, maybe like I'd say two months later she died. 

Quena: Mm  

mm  

Quena: So, so did you feel very abandoned by her? Yes. I got, I felt abandoned by her. I didn't really think about my daddy at that moment. Okay. It was just my mother for some reason, I guess. So she was more in the picture and my sister had told me stories that she just don't want me. That's why.  

Rachel: So, so a lot happened between growing up and where you are now. 

Rachel: Mm-hmm. I'm assuming a lot happened. Yes,  

Quena: it did.  

Rachel: So let's talk about some of the, the points along the way. So did you, did you move outta your grandparents' house?  

Quena: Yeah, when I turned 13, my grandma, I guess she had Alzheimer's. Oh. So she started acting weird. She'll wake me up at two o'clock in the morning and like, tell me to sweep in the kitchen and I'll go sweep. 

Quena: And then she would say, still there. So she start hitting me.  

Telicia: Mm.  
 

Quena: And. She was doing it one day and I counted, my hand brushed across her and she told her family, her kids that I hit her. So they start threatening me and tell what they were do to me. So my oldest sister already moved out, so she came and got me and I ended up moving with her. 

Quena: And you were 13? Yes. How old was she? My sister, I think she  

Rachel: was like 18, 19, somewhere in there. So you guys were still just like kids? Yes. Living on your own? Yes. What was that like? It  

Quena: was  

Rachel: okay because  

Quena: she had kids, um Oh, she had already had kids. Okay. Yes. So I kept her kids. I didn't go to school. I just sat at the house all day while she worked and came back and forth, and I go visit my granddaddy. 

Quena: And then my mom died. So you would watch her kids for her? Mm-hmm. So you dropped outta school? Yes. Then my grandma died. Um, so I felt bad because the reason my sister told me that my grandma died was because I had, um, left out her house one day, my sister's house, and I was trying to get back home. I called my granddaddy to pick me up and my grandma answered the phone. 

Quena: He was like, no, he's not coming to get you. So I sent some guys from school. And they were like, I can take you home. But they didn't take me home. They decided to take me to their house and they um, kind of took advantage of me. They raped me and I never told nobody. So when I went home, finally got home, my grandma had had a heart attack and my sister told me that it was because she worried about me all night. 

Quena: 'cause they didn't know where I was. So that bothered me for a long time because I thought it was the cause of it.  

Rachel: So. You got taken advantage of by? By these guys? Yes. And how old were you then? I was like 13. Getting rid,  

Quena: going 14. Wow. Yeah, its wearing, gosh, the same. Then a lot happened at that moment. I said my grandma died. 

Quena: Then my mama died. And then that's when I realized that the story I heard about my mother, yeah. Wasn't true. 'cause so we went to her funeral. My sister didn't, my siblings was at in front and my sister was like, no, we don't sit in the back. 'cause she didn't want us. So she had my aunt, she wrote a poem or a letter to her kids and in the letter that said that she wasn't stable, she was on alcohol. 

Quena: Very bad. My daddy was on drugs. And she didn't feel there was a place for children, so she gave all her kids to the grandparents 'cause she knew it would be well taken care of. But she loved us very much and it made me feel bad 'cause I hated her all that time for no reason. So I never got that relationship with her. 

Rachel: Hmm. Did it make you feel good to hear that she loved you?  

Quena: It did. And sad because at that time I didn't. Yeah. I didn't really love her.  

Jonathan: Yeah.  

Quena: So. It made me just really think about a lot like the things I could have been doing with her. 'cause my siblings used tell me stuff about her, like she loved Turtle and this and that, and I'm like, okay, I know none of that. 

Quena: I didn't even know her birthday. So like on her birthdays and stuff, it makes me sad. Yeah. Because I never did that with her.  

Jonathan: It's like, it's like you were robbed Yes. Of a mom.  

Quena: Yeah. I had one memory with her in my fifth grade. Um, graduation I didn't think about because my grandparents didn't do that. So when I was on the stage going up to, to sit down, I heard, that's my baby, that's my baby Queena. 

Quena: I'm like, okay, who calling my name? And she was right there on the front row.  

Mm-hmm.  

Quena: So that's the one victory I have with her. How'd you feel when you heard that? Great. Yeah. Yeah, because I didn't think nobody would be there.  

Rachel: Okay. So you're 13 and all that happens then what's, what's next?  

Quena: We had a house fire at my sister's apartment. 

Rachel: Okay?  

Quena: So me and her kids moved to this with this lady. That my cousin knew and we were there. Of course, I still wasn't going to school because I keeping kids and the lady thought that my sister gave food stamps or a check. So she called defects and when they came to the house they asked me questions like, why are you not at school? 

Quena: I'm like, I keep my sister kids. I'm like, so who? Where's your mother? I told, she's deceased. And they was like, so who has guardian of you? I'm like, who is, where is guardian? So I told where I grew up at. So they called my great granddaddy and he was like, I don't know nothing about that. So they took us that I didn't have no guardianship over me, so they took me and the kids to, um, foster care. 

Quena: So I ended up in a group home till I was 17.  

Rachel: And then what happened when you were 17?  

Quena: I left. They told me I could leave when I was 17. So started gonna school that day. I left and I went and stayed with my boyfriend for a minute. And I was still in school, but then my um, my granddad called and said that my sister kids were about to get took and go to foster care. 

Quena: So I had to make a decision either though my nephews or be friends in school. I chose my nephews 'cause I had just went through that. So I moved back in with my granddaddy for a minute and I took care of the kids.  

Jonathan: Wow.  
 

Quena: Then I moved back with my boyfriend and we got into it. I had my nephew and we got into it. 

Quena: He tried to kill me and his mama took me to my sister house. His mom did?  

Rachel: Mm-hmm. Because you were in  

Quena: danger? No, because one of my exes, um, was right there too, and he seen it and he came to saved me and she told me I needed to get a restraining order against my ex. And I was like, why would I do that? He saved me. 

Quena: Your son was trying to kill me. And she was like, either you do it or I'm gonna take you to a shelter. So I was like, well, I'm not doing that. So she brought me to my sister's house.  

Rachel: So she was So what year were you at my sister's house?  

Quena: Like 1998.  

Rachel: Before our time. Before my time? Yes, for sure. What was that experience like? 

Rachel: So you were with your nephew?  

Quena: Mm-hmm. So it was different because I had never been based away from my family like that. I met another little girl that was named Queena. Oh, and my nephew and the little girl got close. They had like the little, the families that would come in, adopt the kids and have Christmas for them and bring stuff. 

Quena: I stayed maybe about, I'd say maybe five months. Then I met a guy and I left, me and my nephew and I moved back with my granddaddy and I started working at the airport. And I worked there for a while, just living a regular life for a little while. Mm-hmm. Then I moved again, started working at Crystals. I met. 

Quena: A person and I got with my sister, my baby sister. 'cause she was like, she would have an issue with my granddaddy. My mother and daddy helped her out 'cause she became pregnant and I went and got her and had her come stay where I was at and she had the baby.  

Rachel: So what brought you to Restoration House?  

Quena: A lot of my family started dying more everywhere. 

Quena: I was close to. Like my siblings wasn't close. We wasn't close anymore. And I started taking grief on in a different way. Okay. I, um, started doing drugs and drinking. Was this the  

Rachel: first time you'd ever done that?  

Quena: Yes. Okay. So I would introduce the drugs. At first it was just like the mailing me out when I drunk. 

Quena: And then I became, I got fibroids and the pain used to be ridiculous and I had, um, dead powder. One day it noticed, it numbed the pain, so that was my excuse then. Then when people start dying, like my brother got killed in 2019, I used that and it took the pain away. So it became more and more of a habit of doing it. 

Quena: Then my granddaddy died. Um, and there was a big one because that was my world. So I, um, I just used it as a, a way to cope with everything. So I got to the point where I would work at IHOP in 2000, um, 23, and it was, I was staying at this, the rundown. I don't know what, it wasn't it's room, but it was real dangerous there. 

Quena: Like they were shooting inside the building and everything. So off working, I lost my job. Um, then I lost where I was staying at, so I was still doing drugs. I, um, walked the street for about maybe two weeks back and forth. I was staying back and forth in my at the ihop 'cause my sister worked there. Okay. 

Quena: So I was staying there. And I just walked straight. And then my sister finally told this pastor about my situation. They used to come in there all the time. He was like, can you call her and tell her we wanna help her? So I came up there. He had a meeting with me. He was like, um, God asked, told me to ask you, are you ready now? 

Quena: Are you tired? I'm like, huh? He's like, are you tired? I'm like, yes, I'm tired. He said, no, you really tired. So I started crying. He said, yeah, you're tired now. He say, um, God, have a mess for you. I said, okay. He said, what he wants you to do is he wants you to stop doing drugs. No more backsliding, no more making excuses. 

Quena: I'm like, wait a minute. I never told this man this.  

Rachel: Yeah. You're like, this is weird.  

Quena: Yeah. And he was like, he needs you to, uh, read Psal nine one. For five weeks straight and he needs to go to my sister's house. I said, which one of my sisters? He said, no, no, no, no, no. It's a shelter. Call my sister's house. I need you to go there. 

Quena: I'm like, okay. And then he was like, and you have four people that's praying for your downfall and one that's on your side. I'm like, huh? He said, your siblings, they're all praying for your downfall. So one Victoria. That's my oldest sister one I grew up with. He was like, she's praying for you so hard, but you have four people praying for your downfall so bad. 

Quena: And he started naming my siblings and I'm like, I never told you that either. I'm like,  

Rachel: you're like, where did this guy come from is a nut job.  

Quena: Yeah. I'm like, okay, this really gotta be God.  

Rachel: Yeah. It's no way he, well,  

Quena: I'm  

Rachel: glad you thought that.  

Quena: I would've thought a nut job I did it for, but then like, no, it gotta be good. 

Quena: And he was like, God said that you keep promising that you gonna stop doing drugs and then you backslide. And that's where I really knew of God. Yeah. Because I always did that. So he was like, go clean your face. We'll have breakfast. Go from there. So he took me to, um, took me downtown. He thought that was my sister also at, and I walked around downtown looking and looking, couldn't figure out where it was. 

Quena: I end up at Gateway and I couldn't get into a shelter there 'cause I had been living in DeKalb County. I. They said that was Atlanta, so they gave me Melissa places, so I seen restoration house on there. So I went to my friend house the night before and he was like, I'll take you early in the morning. So I went to the restoration house and it was like eight of us, and it was like only four or five beds. 

Quena: I'm like, oh my God, I'm not gonna get in here. So they're like, don't leave in May. Some people may not get in. So at the last moment they were like, you can come in. So I interviewed with Ms. Daphne and um, she was like, you are in now. Before I did that, I read everything inside Resurrection, all the prayers on the walls and stuff. 

Quena: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. And so she said, I got in, I turned to my left and right on the wall was Psalms 9 0 1. It was like, it just lit up and I was like, okay, I'm in the right place.  

Rachel: Hmm.  

Quena: So, but I didn't know there was a gateway to my sister's house until I talked to my Oh, you didn't? No. You didn't even know  

Rachel: they were connected? 

Quena: No. I talked to my Baer, Ms. Cheryl, and she was like, um, do you wanna go to my sister's house or what do you wanna do? I said, my sister's house. What they gotta do anything. She like, you stay here for 30 days, then you are over there. Yeah. Oh, okay. Like that's wow. But yeah, so that's how I ended up with my sister's house. 

Jonathan: How did it feel like dots start to connect? You see the verse on the wall. You hear about my sister's house. Hey, that's where I've been trying to go.  

Quena: I felt that God was really right there with me. Yeah. That I got somebody really looking over and praying for me that. It was a big change for my life. It felt amazing though because at my, at the restaurant house, it was a different scene. 

Quena: I met new friends. Um, the style was amazing. I don't know, it was just different. Yeah. I felt very loved there.  

Jonathan: Good. So you get to my sister's house.  

Quena: Mm-hmm.  

Jonathan: Um, what was your experience like there?  

Quena: Well, at first it, I'm stubborn. So that's one thing it did to me. I'm very arrogant. I have a lot of pride, so I had to change that. 

Quena: But at first, when I got there mm-hmm. Me and my advocate used to go back and forth because the when the recovery track. Okay. And I felt that I could do on my own.  

Rachel: Yeah.  

Quena: She kept told me I had to go to meetings and I didn't like the meetings. They were like, to me they're depressing. So I'm like, I don't wanna go there. 

Quena: She like, you have to go. I'm like. I'm not doing that. So we just used to go back and forth all the time. But then eventually I got to the point where I learned that she was, it's in my best interest. And she used to ask me, what is your problem with me? I said, I don't have a problem. It is just that you tell me to do something that I don't wanna do. 

Quena: Yeah. Just really like pay attention. I'm really Got you. So I started going to the meetings. Um, I went to counseling and that really helped Ms. Kimberly, she's amazing. She, she talked to me, we talked about my mother. She told me how to handle that. 'cause it was like, she said, I had a whole lot of repressed anger and that was my problem. 

Quena: And once I started talking, I wrote letters to my mother, to my grandma, all them, and it helped.  

Jonathan: It released a lot. What kind of things, if you don't mind sharing, what kind of things did you write in your letter to your mom?  

Quena: I told her how I wish I would got to know her better. I didn't have that little grudge against her. 

Quena: And we would actually to sit and talk. I would had a better experience with her. I wish I would've known her birthday. Um, her favorite color, her favorite food, just if I'm like her or my daddy. It was like everything I just needed to know from her if my life would've been different if she was in it. Um. 

Quena: Just anything a child would wanna know their mother. Mm-hmm. Um, so that made me, and I apologized to her. For what? Yeah. Hated her. Yeah. I hated her a while. Um, just, just wanted to know her, that's all. So, and I told her, I put in there that my siblings, they told me a lot about her. I know I favor her. It's just. 

Quena: It was just me talking from her heart to her. I made her know that I do love her and I miss her, and that's all just talking to her. And I used to, I wrote letters to her constantly after that, just telling her things going on in my life. Mm-hmm. How I felt that the place I was at, um, how I understood that, what she was going through at the time. 

Rachel: Yeah. It seems like that one decision that she made to. Leave you there when you were Seven days. Really changed a lot. Yes. The trajectory of your life, it seems like.  

Quena: Yes, it did. But then I also told her that my great grandparents was great. Mm-hmm. Especially my granddaddy. 'cause like I said, I was spoiled. 

Quena: Whatever. Little bit wanted little bit got, they caught me bougie because I was the kind of person that didn't eat bologna. I wanted ham, stuff like that. So I told her that. You chose the right people to basically get me to, yeah. So I was okay. I had a good life.  

Rachel: So you've gone, did you go through the next Steps program? 

Rachel: Yes. How was that? It was great.  

Quena: At first it wasn't, 'cause I didn't wanna get in a circle. I'm very shy.  

Rachel: Yeah. I mean the circle's intimidating. Yes. So I used to pray. I don't wanna get in the circle. Go, I don't wanna go,  

Quena: I don't wanna go. So Mr. Green, he called me, um, like. The first time he called me, it was the day before I actually said I was gonna leave anyway. 

Yeah.  

Quena: So I was nervous. Um, I was shaking it night. I did okay. It wasn't Uhuh, they couldn't hear me, the song I sung. Um, the only reason I got through the song was 'cause of miss. Um. I forgot her name. Ms. Simone. Yes. I knew it was with S. That's okay. And she was singing it with me and looking at me smiling and that gave me encouragement that I was doing good. 

Quena: So yeah, the end of it, the graduation, how you get SOE, they talked to me about something different. Ms. Green was like, I wanna do something different with you, because I noticed that you don't project yourself. It's like you hold back a lot and I think it was 'cause of your mouth. He was like, so your mouth. 

Quena: Yeah, because I didn't have any teeth. Oh, okay. And he knew, but you have  

Rachel: beautiful teeth right now.  

Quena: Yes. So he suggested that I go to Mercy Care.  

Rachel: Okay.  

Quena: And talk to them. So I went there and they had me, um, write two essays about my life and how I got to the predicament I was in and what will I do within the time to better myself if they granted me to get dentures. 

Quena: So I got approved, I went and got 'em. And because they also felt that getting a job, I feel more comfortable. Yeah. And the people wouldn't really Yeah. Judge me if I had it. You're too pretty to not have teeth. Thank you. Yeah. So yeah. So I, how do they feel? At first they didn't feel right. Yeah. But now I'm good. 

Quena: They, they feel like a part of me. Do you feel  

Rachel: more confident? Yes.  

Quena: So I do. I, um, smile a lot. Yeah. I um, you have a gorgeous smile. You do. Thank you. So first it didn't feel right because I'm like this in my mouth. It feel like, I don't know, it felt like I was just holding on to  

Rachel: Yeah.  

Quena: A block inside my mouth. 

Quena: Mm-hmm. Yeah. So yeah. So you got a  

Rachel: job?  

Quena: Yes. I work at Popeye's. They're amazing. They adopted me from like the second day because they said I was a fast learner. Yeah. And they just, they argue about me, like my main manager. She was like, that's my girl. And like I had called. Pneumonia like the second week I was there. 

Quena: Um, so I was out for a whole week and they checked on me constantly. They make sure I was okay. She talked to the gym about me all the time. So I made my, my Miss Queen need to come back. My Miss Queen need to come back because they would've call me Miss Queen. So I came back. He was like, I'm so happy you're back. 

Quena: 'cause she been talking about you the whole darn time. She said, I was worried about her because she was real sick. They just, I just feel a lot of love there. Like, my birthday is coming up on Saturday. And so my, one of my managers, she was like, she gonna buy me an air fryer. Um, I was like, no. What else do you want? 

Quena: I'm like, I only been here like two and a half months. They love you. Yes. Yeah.  

Jonathan: That's so special. That  

Quena: is, it is. I feel very special to see on my birthday.  

Jonathan: I mean, when we talk about like community, um, I think. We don't often think about like our workplace becomes our community. Right. It is.  

Rachel: Like I,  

Jonathan: yeah. We work together. 

Jonathan: It's the  

Rachel: two best friends there after work.  

Quena: Yeah. I feel very included in everything. Good. Well, what does the future look like for you? I wanna get my own place. I want a baby. Not sure about that, but, um Okay. That's what I want. You wanna be a mom? Yes, I do.  

Jonathan: Hmm.  
 

Quena: But I'm not sure it was in my future or not. 

Jonathan: You know, that that's, that strikes me because  

Quena: mm-hmm.  

Jonathan: When you have shared your story, the thing that sticks out to me is that you're a caretaker. You are and you love people. You love your people. Yeah. I have  

Quena: basically raised all my nieces and nephews. Yeah. Yeah. Sounds like, especially one in particular before my brother died. 

Quena: Mm-hmm. He had a son and he gave me the baby when the baby was seven days old. Amazing. The same age I was, but  

yeah,  

Quena: he, because they had a situation going on, they had no water and stuff. So I came and he was told the baby mama to gimme the baby, and she like hold, like, no, she gonna take the baby with her. 

Quena: And I cut that baby to, he was seven days old and we eat his birthday like three days after mine, five days after mine. So that's my little heart. So I have always been there to help take care of my nieces and nephews and stuff. So yeah, you have a lot of love to give. Yeah. So it's like, I just want that baby where. 

Quena: They can't take it from me.  

Rachel: Yeah. Yeah. 'cause you've had a lot of stuff taken from you. Yes. Um, that's what kind of strikes me about your story is it's, you've had a lot of, you had your childhood taken from you, you had your mom taken from you, you had so much taken from you, but you have so much, um, life and so much, um,  

Jonathan: so much to give. 

Rachel: Yeah. So much to give for someone who's gotten a lot taken away. You could have, you could have. You've been in a much different space, but you just, yeah. You have such a bright future and you Yes. You're gonna give a lot to a lot of people. Yeah. Okay.  

I  

Rachel: try. You're gonna be the queen in a lot of people's lives. 

Rachel: That's the plan. Yes.  

Jonathan: Well, um, I want to ask one last question. Going back to your, your story as, as you're thinking through your life, a lot of points. It's easy to say, I felt unseen. Right?  

Mm-hmm.  

Jonathan: Um, could you just share with us what is it like to feel unseen?  

Quena: It's not good. I don't, it make you feel basically unwanted, unloved, um, that you're, you're here, but nobody noticed it. 

Quena: And that's how I always felt that I was doing everything for everybody and then nobody really understand that I'm giving. But y'all taking, and nobody dared to give to me. So it's like, now I see the giving back to me and I like that it's a, a real better feeling. 'cause that's the other reason I got to the point where I was, I start feeling very unwanted, like used and abused. 

Quena: I don't like being used. So now it's like, God put me in a place where I can show that love and I get it back and people appreciate it. So I would rather have it that way. That's why in the future I want to be an audition counselor. That's my goal right now. I think I went through the, what I went through to help somebody else, and I always know I'm the kind of person that can give people advice, help them through things. 

Quena: And so at first I thought just counseling. And then I talked to my, uh, counselor and she was like, I can see you as that advocate. Mm-hmm. Um, addition counselor. 'cause you just have that giving part of you.  

Hmm.  

Quena: Yeah. So, yeah. So I see that part.  

Rachel: Wow.  

Quena: So that's my goal.  

Rachel: Well, thank you for sharing your story with us today. 

Rachel: You are welcome. That was amazing. I feel like you're such a, you're, you have such a warm energy and you just have so much love and you didn't get a lot of love. So. You really have, um, defined Yeah.  

Jonathan: All of that.  

Rachel: Yeah. Well, it is so amazing. It's amazing. So thank you for sharing that with us. You are welcome. 

Rachel: I hope that you all enjoyed listening to Queena story and that you take your own queena energy into the world. Um, but I think we just learned so much about how, um, you can experience these feelings of abandonment, um, these feelings of not feeling loved, but that doesn't have to define you. Because obviously Queen has always had that within her, and now she's able to go and give that into the world. 

Rachel: If you made it this far into the episode, you're likely feeling the weight of these stories unseen. Atlanta was created to reveal the raw and unfiltered realities faced by individuals in our city struggles with addiction, homelessness, and mental health. It's heavy, but don't stop now. We're about to turn the page to something life-changing. 

Rachel: Hope is coming. When someone steps through our doors, they step into an opportunity to start fresh. The transformation you're about to hear wouldn't be possible without our incredible partners like the Justin Landis group, whether you're buying or selling your home in metro Atlanta, their unwavering commitment to exceptional service and authentic relationships. 

Rachel: Sets them apart. Their compassion and dedication to our community fuels stories just like these. A heartfelt thank you to our partner and sponsor, Justin Landis Group, because of your generosity, these stories don't end here. Now let's dive back into the episode. We hope you've really enjoyed that. I know we did. 

Rachel: I feel like I got so much out of what it's actually like being homeless and then what it's like walking through our doors. And we want to talk today to someone who I love, we all love here at Atlanta Mission. She's been here a long time and I'll have her introduce herself. But it's Isha Maxwell. She is the director over at my Sister's house. 

Rachel: So thanks for being here, Isha.  

Telicia: Yeah. Thank you all for having me. Super excited. Yes. Super. We're, we're so happy to  

Rachel: have you here. Tell us a little bit about kind of what you've done here at the Mission and how you got into your current role.  

Telicia: Yeah, woo. It's been a journey. Um, so I joined the Mission, mission in 2017 in Human Resources. 

Telicia: That was my formal education, but if anybody's ever worked at the mission, we know how God works things out and. Makes you do a pivot in your life. Um, and so I remember during my first interview it was like, where do you see yourself in five years? I was like, I'm gonna have your job as the head of director. 

Telicia: God said, that's cute. I have a different idea for you. But I became a little burnt out just with HR having worked in the field for about 15 years. It's just. Like, okay, I need to do something different here. Um, and had the opportunity to join our vocational program as the head trainer and did that for a little while and God was like, that's cool. 

Telicia: You're doing really good there. I need you to go do something else. So I moved over to our client facing side as a services leader. And um, honestly, that's where I really, really felt like God was using my gifts to really, really be helpful. And then throughout that work became the campus director, and I've been in that role for two years now,  

Rachel: so,  

Telicia: wow. 
 

Telicia: She's killing it. Right.  

Rachel: Um, it's been a fun transition to see. Like going from HR and being so employee focused to now being primarily client focused. Yeah. You have such a holistic view of the mission, which I think helps you do your job so well.  

Telicia: Absolutely. I mean, it's an advocate for the people, right? 

Telicia: Yes. It looks different on either end, but the end goal is to make sure people are happy in getting the services or the support that they need to be able to succeed professionally or in their personal journeys.  

Jonathan: Isha our clients as they're sharing their stories. They're talking about restoration house. I was at Restoration House. 

Jonathan: Yeah. Then I went to my sister's house. Yeah. And for our listeners who aren't super familiar with Atlanta Mission and how we work, can you connect the dots? What is Restoration House? How is it different from my sister's house? Is it  

Rachel: actually their sister's house? Yeah. Well,  

Jonathan: what's the deal here?  

Telicia: Right. So I would say look at it, um, as a town home. 

Telicia: So Restoration house is our front door to our program. And so when ladies come there, we are just loving them. We wanna provide them a safe space to be able to just relax for a minute. If you think about anybody's journey, if you know anybody who's actually gone through homelessness, you need a time to just breathe. 

Telicia: You don't necessarily have all the answers. You don't. You don't know. You just know I need to come inside. Um, and so that's what restoration serves as, and it allows us the opportunity to start getting to know a little bit of their story. We're not doing a deep dive, but just what brought you in? What's happening? 

Telicia: What do you need? How can we love you? Take out your basic needs. We got you covered. What, what can we do beyond that? And so the ladies have about 30 to 45 days to kind of just sit and talk to staff there. Like, what do you wanna do? Mm-hmm. What is the change that you wanna make? Um, some opt for just short term. 

Telicia: Some come in, I just need housing. That's all I really feel I need. Then we have others who are like, you know what? I do need this moment in time, and this just some bigger things that. I in my own power have not been able to deal with and I need that support. And so when they make that decision, they come on across the hallway to my sister's house. 

Telicia: So, fun fact about my sister's house, because we do serve women and children and we wanna take that stigma off our kids. We don't wanna say they're at a shelter. So that's why my sister's house was named. That way. So if a kid's like, where do you live at my sister's house?  

Yeah.  

Telicia: It's much easier for a kid, kid, right? 

Telicia: It's intentionally confusing. Absolutely. Absolutely. We love confusion. We love it. Absolutely. It's a thing. It's a thing. And so when they come to my sister's house, that's when I say the real work begins for them because that's our longer term part of our program. So they can be anywhere from six months to a year with us just working on things. 

Telicia: They get to create their own plans. What is it you want to work on? And that's where the staff begin to surround them. Create a plan, a outlook life plan, if you wanna call that. Some goals we want to achieve to really start attacking the things that they feel that has not allowed them to be successful in their life journey. 

Telicia: So,  
 

Rachel: yeah. So they spend the first 30 days? Yeah, 30 to 45. 30 to 45 days at restoration house. Then they About three blocks away. Yeah. It's walking distance. It is in walking distance. They go over to my sister's house. Across the hall. Across the hall, yeah. So you're not seeing people necessarily like. Come in right off the street. 

Telicia: No.  
 

Rachel: So what kind of like mental state are they in when they've moved over to? 'cause there's probably a different type of mental state because now they're committing to something. Mm-hmm.  

Telicia: Absolutely. So with the restoration house, I almost feel like they kind of triage and stabilize our ladies. Mm-hmm. So we don't get the raw version of them. 

Telicia: It's still raw, but the not the raw is. Um, and so there's a little bit of trust that they've built there. So it is a step of faith because it's a whole new team. They're having a whole new building. A whole new team that they're having to adapt to. Um, so there's still some hesitation 'cause it's like, I don't know y'all, y'all don't know me, right? 

Telicia: I haven't spent the last 40 days with you all. So there is some level of learning, but the biggest thing is allowing them to create hope in them that they can do this. Mm-hmm. And so whether it's been abuse, um, childhood trauma, depression, life just happened, they need people that believe in them and have that. 

Telicia: Space where I'm saying these things out loud. I don't wanna sound crazy, but this is my reality, right? And so a lot of it is just again. Creating a safe space for them to be like, listen, we're trained, so whatever you need to go through, go through it here. Go through it now. This is your safety net. And so you still have individuals who are dealing with, um, levels of mental health. 

Telicia: Mm-hmm. It looks different, but that's when they're partnered with their services. Team, their advocate, their counselor, and their social worker, to have that direct support team to start addressing some of those things. So some of our ladies are undiagnosed.  

Rachel: Yeah. But  

Telicia: through conversations, we determine like, okay, we probably need to get a mental health assessment. 

Telicia: Yeah. Because what you're believing is happening might be outta your control. Yeah. And it's just something you've just never addressed, or you've labeled it something differently. And so you've built all these coping skills around how you believe you can handle it. Well. Maybe some counseling, maybe medication might be the thing that will actually change your trajectory. 

Telicia: And so our biggest emotional state, I would say is just starting to cultivate trust. Trust and know that we're not here to harm them. Yeah. We want to only bring out the good to them, and that it's a safe place to fall apart, to be rebuilt. Mm.  

Jonathan: What's the biggest, trust is such a key piece of this. What's the biggest way your team builds trust? 

Jonathan: Yeah. With clients. How does that happen?  

Telicia: Honestly, I would say being who we are, letting people see who we are. Mm. Sharing some of our story, like a lot of the ladies, 'cause they're like campus director, it's the principal's office, but it's just knowing how to share our story. So it's like we're all just humans. 

Telicia: At the end of the day, my title doesn't drive my life experience. It's something I'm blessed to do and privileged to do. Mm-hmm. But there's a. Story before that. And so, um, like for myself, I was a young mom. I had heard my first child at 21. A lot of people like what? You have a 23-year-old? Yeah, I have a 23-year-old son. 

Telicia: I was a young mom. I wasn't prepared. I had a great community behind me that allowed me to be able to grow up myself and also make sure that my child got everything that they needed. And so being able to have just those vulnerable moments so they can just see who we are as people versus our titles or our expertise, and then marry the two together. 

Telicia: So I understand what you've gone through, but yeah. These are the things why we talk about community, why we believe recovery is important. Yeah. Just kind of start infusing those resources into real life stories.  

Rachel: Why is, I think that's what's. So interesting about the work we do, I think in the for-profit sector. 

Rachel: Mm-hmm. You go to work mm-hmm. And you can be whoever you wanna be at work. Yeah. And then you're your person at home. Yep. And we talk a lot about, and on our team of like being one faced, we really have to be one faced at the work we do. Yeah. Because you can't, we're not allowed to come to work here and not. 

Rachel: Show up with vulnerability. Yeah. So can you talk a little bit about, yeah. Because like you worked in hr mm-hmm. And then now you're doing this, and so what is it like, like having to just bring all that stuff into your workplace? Um, it's  

Telicia: different. I will say that's probably the biggest. Uh, fear for me working at the mission because we do do work different. 

Telicia: Mm-hmm. And even in the HR space, it's just different. And I think that's what makes us great, is we're allowed to be human and look at people for who they are, not for the persona we want them to be, or the productivity, the work that they do because people are human. People deal with things. Every day, staff included. 

Telicia: And so I think being able to be vulnerable in this space actually lends to the work that we do because it is building connections, whether it's peer to peer, uh, staff to client, whatever that looks like, it deepens the relationship and I think. It takes away for clients, they now start to understand it's not just a job for us. 

Telicia: Like we really, really love coming in and serving. We don't call it work. We don't call it a job. It's serving because somebody in our life served us for us to be able to be in this position. And so being vulnerable allows, it's scary because it's almost, sometimes you might arm a client with something about you, but I'm like, you know. 

Telicia: Being faith-based, if we believe God has delivered, there's nothing about me that I need to hide or that you can use to hurt me. And if that's kind of the angle you want, that's still okay. I can still love you through it, but it's what makes the difference between us being employees versus being servants. 

Rachel: Can you talk a little bit about what we do for kids At my sister's house? Yes.  

Telicia: All my babies. I love my babies. We have a whole lot of babies right now. Um, I know, I know. We've had a baby doom. Yeah, we have. Whew. We've had seven newborns thus far. We have, wow, I say six in the wings, but for children we have the same level of support. 

Telicia: We have a services team that serves them. Um, we've been blessed to become licensed in our early childcare facility. Okay. And so, just as much as we present the best opportunities for our moms to be transformed, because kids go through the journey as well, and so kids are not immune to what mom is experiencing. 

Telicia: Mm-hmm. They've. Seen thing that is heard thing, they've experienced things themselves. And so we have a complete children's services team that also supports, um, the transformation for our, our kids as well. And so we have a counselor, we have a social worker, they interface, interface with the school systems. 

Telicia: We have a family services leader, a childcare director, and so they work very well to make sure that while mom is healing herself, the children. Also have the opportunity not just to heal because our children come to us, they're behind in education because they've been transient, they haven't had stability, and so they partner with the school systems. 

Telicia: We have great community partners that that bring resources in to make sure by the time our kids leave, they're at grade level. And so that's really critical because again. With the school system, it's hard. And our kids, you know, sometimes they get teased because of the things they've gone through. They don't have a name for why they're reading letters backwards. 

Telicia: Mm. They don't understand all the clinical terms. They just need help. Mm. And so, um, the beautiful thing is that while mom's getting the help, our children also get the same level of support and care.  

Rachel: I think that's my favorite thing about the work that we do. Yeah. Because for so many of these kids, um, they didn't choose us. 

Rachel: Mm-hmm. No, it wasn't their decisions that were made. Mm-hmm. It wasn't, it's, everything has happened to them. Yeah. And so for Mia, when I, when I walk onto our campus, especially my sister's house, you feel this. Light and joy that only kids can bring. Mm-hmm. But you also feel this hope that the cycle ends here. 

Telicia: Yeah. Yeah. And that's what we're trying to do, break the cycle and for our kids create normalcy. Mm-hmm. Right. Um, and I think we do a beautiful thing like holidays. We're in the Christmas holiday season. It's the outpouring from our partners. Mm-hmm. Just. Moms are able to give kids gifts on Christmas morning. 

Telicia: Right. And it, they don't have to worry about the money, the thing, but it's creating those moments. So when they reflect on their time, one I say for moms is, you're resilient because you're showing your children a different way, and that it's okay to ask for help.  

Mm-hmm.  

Telicia: When you don't have it. But they're also seeing you thrive. 

Telicia: And when they see you thrive, kids are happier. Because our kids feed off our moms. They do. When mom is not in a good place, kids are not in a good place. So to be able to create an environment that's love warm, that moms know that our staff is gonna care and love for our kids, it's just a beautiful thing to see because. 

Telicia: Ultimately, that's the generation that we're really trying to change is our children. I know.  

Yeah. And  

Telicia: so when they're happy and good and thriving, like all is right in the world, right? Because just because this was your story coming in, you don't have to lead the same way that you came in. So I think that's really a cool part. 

Telicia: And I love the babies. I mean, they just, happy doesn't love babies. If you have a bad,  

Rachel: if you ever have a bad day at the mission, everyone always just says, walk down the childcare hall.  

Telicia: Especially the infant room. They're so cute. They're so cute. I can't even, I know like how she has them set up now, they're like little students in their little bouncy. 

Telicia: I know. And there's like four newborns right now. But it's, it's such  

Rachel: an amazing, like I think that it's such a differentiator for the services that we provide. It's the first step in breaking that generational, um, those generational poverty. So Absolutely. Thank you so much, Isha, for being here today. I feel like I got so much insight. 

Rachel: Absolutely. And, um. The, the ladies are so lucky to have you. Um, they might say that today. Maybe  

that's okay. They, they,  

Rachel: everyone that we've talked to is so just, has really felt that love, felt that safety, and I know so much of that comes from your leadership. Mm. So I just wanna say thank you so much for all the work you're doing. 

Rachel: Thank you. You're a beloved member of the Atlanta Mission community, and we really hope that you guys got more insight from Isha into what happens at my sister's house and all the amazing work that she is doing over there. Um, and we hope to see you guys next time. Bye.  

Tensley: Thank you so much for listening and engaging with these challenging yet vital conversations about mental health addiction. 

Tensley: Homelessness and trauma in our city. Facing these issues head on is how we ignite real transformation in Atlanta. Thank you to our season sponsor, the Scott Pryor Law Group. The transformation you've heard wouldn't be possible without incredible partners like the Scott Pryor Law Group, personal injury and accident attorneys, their compassion and dedication to our community. 

Tensley: Fuel stories of transformation just like these. If you are injured in a semi-truck or car accident, call the Scott Pryor Law Group. As a US Marine, we fight and win for you. Our clients are family for life. We handle all types of injuries. You focus on healing and we handle the rest. Now, if today's episode inspired you to take the next step, we would love to invite you to join the work that God is doing here. 

Tensley: There are two really impactful ways for you to get involved. First, you can give financially to help us continue the work you heard about today. Second, you can volunteer your time by serving at one of our campuses. You can find all the ways to give and get involved@atlantamission.org. Thank you again for being part of this journey. 

Tensley: Please join us next time as we uncover more powerful stories of hope and transformation.