Single mom's struggles worsen with economy
HIGH POINT – In the last two years, there have been many times when Shawnikwa Thompson has asked, “Why?”
Why can’t she find permanent, full-time work? Why did she have to become a victim of domestic violence? Why can’t things get better?
Those are questions the 27-year-old single mother can’t completely answer. But the general conclusion she has come to might surprise you.
“These things have helped me learn to appreciate the things that I do have,” she said. “It changed me a lot.. No, I’ve never blamed anyone for what happened.”
Thompson’s struggles began in May 2008, just months before the U.S. stock market and housing market crashed. The New York native moved to High Point with her daughter, Alexis, who was 1 year old at the time, and her daughter’s father. Thompson said it was his idea to move because he had relatives who lived in the area. She agreed to move because she wanted a “slower-paced” lifestyle.
“It was supposed to be a good place to raise my daughter,” she said.
The couple had planned to stay with the relatives when they arrived, but several issues kept that from happening, Thompson said. One of the issues was that the relatives didn’t have enough room for the family.
A mere three days after her new life was supposed to begin, she and her daughter found themselves living in the High Point Salvation Army shelter. Her boyfriend remained with the relatives because the shelter does not take unwed couples.
“It was really hard because I had never been in a situation like that before,” she said. “I didn’t have anyone down here. But my primary goal was to slow things down and raise my daughter. So that’s what I tried to do.”
The job market was beginning to take on its grim appearance, and High Point’s unemployment rate jumped from 5.3 percent in April 2008 to 6.2 percent in May 2008. But Thompson said she submitted job applications every day, made trips to social services and visited with housing authorities.
“I did what I had to do,” she said.
And like a ray of light in a dark storm, Thompson got a call back on a hot day in June from a housekeeping service. They wanted to hire her full time.
“I was lucky to get the job,” she said. “But as soon as I started working, I started having trouble with one of my hands.”
As quickly as the light had come, darkness seemed to flood back when a doctor told Thompson she needed surgery to correct a syndrome known as De Quervain. Similar to carpel tunnel, the syndrome causes pain and inflammation in hands that perform repetitive motions. In Thompson’s case, it required about two months of recovery.
Not only did it mean the end of her new job, but it also prompted her to make one of the hardest decisions of her life.
“That’s when I had to send my daughter back to New York to live with my mother,” she said. “I had to pull things together for us until she could come back.”
Thompson remained in the shelter alone, spending five months, including the two months of recovery, there.
“I was really depressed for a while,” she said. “I had been the only one taking care of my daughter. Her father couldn’t find work either.”
But those moments taught her a lesson - don’t be ashamed to ask for help when it is truly needed.
“There are people out there who will help. You just have to let them know you need it.”
phaynes@hpe.com
Why can’t she find permanent, full-time work? Why did she have to become a victim of domestic violence? Why can’t things get better?
Those are questions the 27-year-old single mother can’t completely answer. But the general conclusion she has come to might surprise you.
“These things have helped me learn to appreciate the things that I do have,” she said. “It changed me a lot.. No, I’ve never blamed anyone for what happened.”
Thompson’s struggles began in May 2008, just months before the U.S. stock market and housing market crashed. The New York native moved to High Point with her daughter, Alexis, who was 1 year old at the time, and her daughter’s father. Thompson said it was his idea to move because he had relatives who lived in the area. She agreed to move because she wanted a “slower-paced” lifestyle.
“It was supposed to be a good place to raise my daughter,” she said.
The couple had planned to stay with the relatives when they arrived, but several issues kept that from happening, Thompson said. One of the issues was that the relatives didn’t have enough room for the family.
A mere three days after her new life was supposed to begin, she and her daughter found themselves living in the High Point Salvation Army shelter. Her boyfriend remained with the relatives because the shelter does not take unwed couples.
“It was really hard because I had never been in a situation like that before,” she said. “I didn’t have anyone down here. But my primary goal was to slow things down and raise my daughter. So that’s what I tried to do.”
The job market was beginning to take on its grim appearance, and High Point’s unemployment rate jumped from 5.3 percent in April 2008 to 6.2 percent in May 2008. But Thompson said she submitted job applications every day, made trips to social services and visited with housing authorities.
“I did what I had to do,” she said.
And like a ray of light in a dark storm, Thompson got a call back on a hot day in June from a housekeeping service. They wanted to hire her full time.
“I was lucky to get the job,” she said. “But as soon as I started working, I started having trouble with one of my hands.”
As quickly as the light had come, darkness seemed to flood back when a doctor told Thompson she needed surgery to correct a syndrome known as De Quervain. Similar to carpel tunnel, the syndrome causes pain and inflammation in hands that perform repetitive motions. In Thompson’s case, it required about two months of recovery.
Not only did it mean the end of her new job, but it also prompted her to make one of the hardest decisions of her life.
“That’s when I had to send my daughter back to New York to live with my mother,” she said. “I had to pull things together for us until she could come back.”
Thompson remained in the shelter alone, spending five months, including the two months of recovery, there.
“I was really depressed for a while,” she said. “I had been the only one taking care of my daughter. Her father couldn’t find work either.”
But those moments taught her a lesson - don’t be ashamed to ask for help when it is truly needed.
“There are people out there who will help. You just have to let them know you need it.”
phaynes@hpe.com