As a single mom, life has been challenging yet rewarding. It comes with sacrifice, long nights, and moments where you question if you are doing enough. But having a community that shows up for you makes all the difference. 

Getting involved with the parent support group at my kids school was a lifesaver. Taking as many workshops and being involved with PTA was exactly the community support that I needed to feel encouraged and reminded that I wasn’t alone. It really takes caring educators to get to know your struggles to be able to support your needs and to feel seen and valued without judgment. Thank you Mrs. Lía for being the community I needed. 

Being a single mother has been harder than I thought. There was a time when my children and I were living in a shelter, not sure about where to go from there. I struggled with feelings of fear, stress, exhaustion, and failure while trying to stay strong for my children every single day. Although I wanted to provide everything for them on my own, there were moments when I had to rely a lot on my family for emotional and financial support to get by. Accepting help was not easy, but it reminded me how important community and support are during difficult times.

Despite the hardships, my focus has always been on giving my children the best life possible. I work hard to make sure they feel safe, loved, and supported, even during our toughest moments. Community and government resources became a lifeline for my family. Access to childcare assistance, food support, housing resources, and developmental services helped ease some of the burdens I carried as a single mom. These programs gave me the opportunity to work toward stability while ensuring my children had access to the care and support they needed to thrive.

The support we received not only helped us survive difficult circumstances, but also gave me hope for a better future. With the help of many people, reliable programs, and the support of my family, I was able to rebuild confidence in myself and create a more stable home for my children. My experiences have shown me that while single mothers face unexpected challenges, having access to resources and a strong support system can really make a difference. 

Sometimes becoming a single mother is a choice, and that choice is an incredibly admirable act. But sometimes mothers enter single parenthood by circumstances beyond their control. 

That was my story...

I became a single mother unexpectedly, and I was not prepared for the struggles that came with unplanned single motherhood. As someone who has experienced single motherhood firsthand, I understand the barriers that can exist when support systems are not in place. I never imagined I would have to navigate motherhood alone. I felt scared, ashamed, overwhelmed, and isolated. At the same time, I was healing from domestic violence while raising two very young daughters. My oldest was only two years old, and my youngest was just eleven months old.

I knew I had to be strong, but strength alone was not enough. I needed support in more than one way. I needed mental health support, shelter, financial stability, and guidance. Most importantly, I needed community — people who reminded me that what happened to me was not my fault, that I was not alone, and that there was still beauty, strength, and hope within single motherhood.

Once I found that community, I knew I wanted to one day pay it forward and become someone’s light during their darkest moments, because no woman should feel ashamed for being a single mother or have to navigate motherhood alone. I am committed to raising awareness of experiences like the ones I lived through so that educators, professionals, and communities can be better prepared to support families with compassion, understanding, and meaningful resources. We must acknowledge the realities and barriers that can accompany unplanned single parenthood, especially when support systems are absent, so we can better recognize the needs of families and provide support without judgment.