When Bianca first walked through the doors of COTS with her eight-year-old daughter Ebriah, she carried more than bags. She carried uncertainty, worry, and the weight of life. After a breakup, losing her job, and applying for unemployment, the financial strain of managing a home alone became too heavy to bear. With bills piling up and no other safe or stable place to turn, Bianca decided to come to COTS.
“Where are we going to sleep?” her daughter asked, wide-eyed. For a mother who had never experienced homelessness, the question was hard to hear — but necessary. “It was a transition for both of us,” Bianca remembers. “I had to reassure her that even though things were hard, God was with us and wouldn’t forsake us.”
Bianca’s journey to COTS began with heartbreak, but also a glimmer of hope. When she struggled to pay rent, around the same time, her mother passed away, leaving a hole in her support system. “Times were just hard,” she says quietly. Then she got a job, and her boss at Sweet Potato Sensations noticed something was wrong. Her boss pulled her aside, reminding her she didn’t have to do it alone, and connected her with COTS.
At first, Bianca was skeptical. She had never been in a shelter and worried about stigma and what it would mean for her daughter. But she also knew she needed help. “In order to receive something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done,” her boss told her. So, with a prayer and a deep breath, Bianca said yes to COTS.
Mrs. Matthews saw potential in Bianca even when she doubted herself. She encouraged her to apply for jobs, enroll in school, and tap into community programs. When Bianca hesitated, overwhelmed by paperwork and fear of rejection, Mrs. Matthews sat with her, sometimes filling out applications side by side. “She wanted all of us to succeed,” Bianca recalls. “She’d say, ‘Don’t worry, I’ll get these to the right people. You can do this.’”
The adjustment wasn’t easy. “I didn’t want to tell my business,” she admits. “I was standoffish at first. I didn’t want people to look down on me.” But the COTS staff broke through her walls with compassion and practical support. She received help with essentials like money orders and getting her driver’s license back. COTS staff members offered warmth, resources, and conversation on the hardest days. And then there was Mrs. Matthews, Director of Employment and Training.
A turning point came when Bianca began receiving housing approvals. Past denials had weighed heavily, but this time was different. “I couldn’t believe it,” she says. “I asked Mrs. Matthews, ‘What did you do to my name?’ She just said, ‘You’ve got to want better to receive better.’”
With COTS’ support, Bianca moved into her own apartment with her daughter — a milestone that brought relief and joy. For her daughter, the transition was transformative. Initially nervous, she soon thrived. Her grades improved, and she became an honor student. She’s nine now and proudly decorated her own room, claiming a space that was hers alone. “She’s always been sweet,” Bianca says, “but now she’s more confident and giving. She tells her cousins, ‘We have to share because we know what it’s like to have less.’”
For Bianca, stability opened doors to new dreams. She enrolled in medical billing and coding classes, determined to build a career, and discovered a passion for juicing, imagining her own juice bar one day. She also dreams of homeownership, recalling how Mrs. Matthews provided information on first-time homebuyer grants. “I want a house for me and my daughter,” she says. “I want her to see that we can keep building.”
Bianca is quick to challenge stereotypes around homelessness. “People think we’re dirty, or on drugs, or don’t take care of ourselves,” she says. “That’s not true. Many of us worked, had savings, and had families. We just needed a hand up.” For her, COTS was more than a shelter — it was a community, a family, and a place where lifelong friendships formed.
Looking back, Bianca doesn’t see her time at COTS as a setback. “It didn’t slow me down,” she says. “It sped me up. It gave me hope. It reminded me that God places people in your life for a reason.”
Her story is one of resilience, faith, and the power of community — a reminder that every gift and act of generosity makes a difference. Stories like Bianca’s are possible because of supporters like you. Your dedication to COTS helps families not just survive — but overcome. From a safe place to lay their heads to housing advocacy, from coaching to encouragement, your generosity fuels transformation. Thank you for making stability, growth, and hope possible for families like Bianca’s.
You’re invited to tune in and hear more of Queen’s story on The Art of Family Podcast. https://bit.ly/SpotifyPcasts-AoF