Marcella’s Story
When Marcella first crossed paths with KCB, she wasn’t exactly knocking on our door with a plan. It was more of a nudge tossed her way by someone who’d walked a similar road. That someone was Jen, who’s now a peer specialist, but also someone who’d graduated from Good Soil Industries herself. Earlier this year, Jen sat down with Marcella, listened to her story, and thought, “This woman’s a perfect fit for GSI.” She knew this program inside and out. She’d worked here, rebuilt her own life through it, and now helps others do the same. Jen wasn’t wrong about Marcella. Today, Marcella’s got steady work, a community that’s got her back, and a fire to help others like her. But if you rewind a bit, and her life looked a whole lot different.
Picture this: ten years on the streets, bouncing between tents and sidewalks in the very cities we drive through on a daily basis. Then, five years off and on in sober living houses and shaky rentals, trying to claw her way out of homelessness. Jobs? They’d come and go. She felt like they’d be slipping through her fingers faster than she could grip them. “I couldn’t hold anything down,” she told our Executive Director, Andrew, during a recent chat. PTSD kept her on edge, fear of failure loomed like a shadow, and the interesting part is, it seemed she was just as scared of success. “Housing first is important,” Marcella said, her voice steady with hard-earned clarity, “but without work and a community, it doesn’t stick. You can’t just put people in a room and call it good. I’m proof of that.”
That’s where GSI came in. Jen brought Marcella to us, right as she was teetering on the edge of giving up. She’d been sober for a stretch but felt trapped and haunted by a past full of abuse, mental stress, and hopelessness. Work wasn’t just a paycheck for her either. “I needed more than housing and meds,” she explained. “I needed a community, a support group. Jen was the first one who offered that because she’d been through it herself and it led me here.”
And what a difference that made. Within weeks of starting at GSI, Marcella felt the ground start to steady under her feet. One moment stands out: her first paycheck in years that didn’t come from disability. “I realized I could do this,” she said, a grin breaking through. “Steady work brought stability. I wasn’t financially insecure anymore, and I wasn’t as tempted to do the things I know I shouldn’t.”
For Marcella, that meant staying sober, which was and is no small feat after years of battling addiction. “I now have the financial freedom to start making the right choices,” she added. That freedom wasn’t just dollars in her pocket, it was dignity and a reason to get up each day.
Fortunately for Marcella, the wins didn’t stop there. KCB’s community center became her anchor. It became somewhere calm to breathe, sort out paperwork, and take steps forward. The staff helped her navigate the maze of forms and applications that used to overwhelm her. And then there were the people who made it personal. Ray, one of GSI’s crew leaders, coached her through the workday and even arranged rides so she’d never be late. “That meant a lot,” Marcella said. “Showing up on time felt like proof I could keep going.” Then there’s Gene, the Director of GSI, who’s walked the same rough roads she has. “It’s easy to work for someone who’s been where I’ve been,” she shared. “He gets it. He helps me push through.”
Community changed everything for Marcella. “Having people willing to meet me where I’m at gave me self-esteem,” she told Andrew. “It practically gave me a purpose for the day and kept me busy, kept me sober.” Before GSI, she didn’t think she could earn money any other way than disability checks. Now? She’s dreaming bigger. “I want to do outreach,” she said, eyes lighting up. “I want to help people like I’m being helped. I’ve tried it on my own before, but doing it with a group, that’s what works.”
Marcella’s got a message to share too: “You can’t just throw socks at people. You have to sit down and meet them where they are.” It’s a lesson she’s lived. She didn’t need a quick fix or a handout, or someone dropping off help and disappearing. “I didn’t need a visiting angel,” she said with a chuckle. “I needed a coach! Someone to sit by me, get to know me, and help me help myself.”
Through the grace of God, that’s what she found at GSI, starting with Jen and carrying through to the whole team. “This place feels like a family,” she added. “They want you to feel welcomed and be better.”
To the donors and partners who keep GSI running, Marcella’s got this to say: “Thank you. Not many programs come beside you and meet you where you are. They do it here, and it works. We need more of this.” She’s living proof that you reap what you sow. “Through the motions of doing the right thing, my life gets better,” she said. Work didn’t just give her a paycheck; it gave her a place to belong.
Marcella’s story is why we do this type of work at KCB. GSI isn’t just about jobs. It’s never been that. It’s about rebuilding lives, one steady shift at a time. Thanks to the generosity of our community, Marcella’s found her footing, and she’s ready to pay it forward, just like Jen did for her.
Want to help write the next chapter for someone like Marcella? Swing by kcbellflower.org or stop by our Community Center to pitch in. Whether it’s donating, volunteering, or spreading the word. Like Marcella says, it takes a group to make it work, and we’d love for you to be part of ours.
Until next time…