“I WANT TO HELP OTHER KIDS WITH DISABILITIES LEARN.”

Struggling As a Refugee

I was born in Rwanda. I came to the United States in 2004 with my family. We left Rwanda because of the war, which I can’t remember too much of because I was so young, but I know that it wasn’t good. With English as my second language and a learning disability, education was a struggle – especially reading and writing. And because I struggled with reading and writing, finding a job was difficult, which made living on my own nearly impossible.

Resource of Confidence

Thankfully, that’s where the Disability Network Southwest Michigan really helped me. First, I participated in Job Club, a summer class sponsored by Disability Network that assisted me with job skills like communication and problem solving. As the class progressed, I started to speak more and more during class activities and group discussions. I even started asking for help with written assignments.

With the self confidence I got from the Job Club, I joined another group to learn to read and write in English, which was something I wanted to do. Also, with the support of Disability Network staff, I’ve moved out of my mom’s place and into my own housing, because I wanted my own space. I’m even managing my own budget. My next goal is finding a job.

Help From

With generous help from Disability Network Southwest Michigan, Leonce was able to change the story.

Health

We are making sure people have access to physical and mental health care, and that babies are born healthy. We work with health care providers to keep costs low and make sure services are available for those with little or no health insurance.

Income

We’re helping families become – and stay – self-sufficient by investing in programs that help them stay in their homes, through rental assistance, budgeting and financial counseling. We also help people become financially stable by supporting job training and retention programs, and through the Tax Counseling Initiative and the Emergency Food and Shelter program.