Single mother goes from client to caseworker
Lindsay Williams used to come to the Duluth Salvation Army in need of food, clothing, gas vouchers, and other assistance. She was a single mother, working dead-end jobs and struggling with addiction.
Miraculously, Lindsay is now a caseworker at the Duluth Salvation Army. Every week she helps dozens of people who are going through the same hardships she once endured.
“People come in from halfway houses or from off the street, and I tell them they can make it – because I was there,” said Lindsay, 37. “You just have to work hard and be persistent with your goals.”
Lindsay’s turnaround began in 2010 when she finished addiction treatment and enrolled in college. For the next four years she picked away at earning an associate’s degree.
During that time, she regularly received basic needs support and spiritual guidance from the Duluth Salvation Army. Lindsay appreciated the help so much that she wanted to become a caseworker herself.
“Every time I came in for food, or clothing, or vouchers, I pictured myself sitting in this same chair,” Lindsay said, seated inside her office.
She went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Minnesota Duluth.
“I am so proud of this accomplishment,” Lindsay said. “I worked my butt off.”
Lindsay is grateful to The Salvation Army and its supporters for all the help she received through the years.
She is also thankful to God.
“As soon as I accepted Christ, everything started falling into place,” Lindsay said. “Everything just keeps getting better, and better, and better.”
Today, Lindsay is current on all of her bills, has stable housing, and is a responsible mother to her three teenage kids.
She is excited about and committed to helping others achieve the same incredible goals she accomplished through the loving support offered by the Duluth Salvation Army.
“No matter what crisis happens to me in the future, I will never go back to being the way I was,” Lindsay said. “I finally made it.”
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