Latoya reflects on the power of finding a welcoming place to call home, St. Catherine’s, when she needed it most.

For Latoya, St. Catherine Residence has been there when she needed it. “I actually lived here before,” she explains. “The first time I came here, I was eighteen.” Latoya had moved out on her own after two years at St. Catherine’s. However, when she was having a tough time years later, she thought of St. Catherine’s again. “I was struggling, so I was like, well St. Catherine’s is the best place.” She was happy to move back into St. Catherine’s, where she still recognized a few residents from her first stay.

Now, nearly five years later, Latoya is in a two-year program studying music composition, after which she hopes to continue at a four-year university. She has a job in food service at the school where she studies, but in the future she plans to be a singer and write music. In her spare time, she plays instruments like guitar and piano and is in a choir.

Before the pandemic, she participated in group activities at St. Catherine’s when she could fit them into her busy schedule, and she also volunteered at an animal shelter, which she’s looking forward to doing again when it’s safe to do so.

Her favorite thing about St. Catherine’s is the neighborhood and her neighbors. “I get along with everybody. I like to talk with people.”

For those in need of support, Latoya is happy to recommend St. Catherine Residence. “If you need a place to stay, just come to St. Catherine’s. If you have any problems, you gotta come here and start over. I think this place probably changed my ways. St. Catherine’s has got a lot of resources for people here.”