Amalia: “I’d Like to Give People a Voice”

Amalia grew up in a military family, which means her parents and siblings never stayed in one place too long. As an adult, Amalia has remained on the go, staying busy and working hard as a business owner, as well as picking herself up whenever life knocked her down.

“I’m a faith-in-action person,” she said. “I don’t lay down easy and I don’t give up.”

Her resilient spirit has come in handy as a member of our Lived Experience Advisory Board (LEAB). We formed LEAB to receive feedback from those who have experienced homelessness, to improve the quality of Abode’s work.

“I want to be an advocate for the vulnerable and defenseles in the area of being unhoused,” Amalia said.

She can relate to those in need, as she has battled family dysfunction, physical and mental health issues, unreliable spouses, and financial woes – the combination of which led her to multiple bouts of homelessness.

Those experiences also taught her that too many people believe a “false narrative” about people who live without a home.

“People assume unhoused people are on drugs or have mental health issues,” she said “I’ve made good money, I was middle class, but life just happened to me and I lost everything.”  

No matter what issues Amalia had to deal with – including crises that ranged from familial to financial to physical and mental – she leaned on her deeply resilient spirit and strong work ethic to battle back. When she lived in a shelter, she visualized her goals for work, income, independence, and gaining a new home – and then began working toward those targets.

Eventually, she qualified for Abode’s Rapid Rehousing program and staff helped find housing. More than a year later, Amalia has stability and said she is ready to help others. She said she has seen more and more middle class Bay Area residents are losing their homes because of rapid income inequality.

“I’ve seen people with good jobs having to go to food banks to eat,” she said.

Amalia looks forward to using her life experience to carry out her LEAB member duties, giving voice to the voiceless.

“I’d like to give people a voice, especially those who are overwhelmed and couldn’t express their needs,” she said. “Some people just don’t have support and they can’t advocate for themselves. I’d love to be their voice while working on LEAB.”