VOA houses and shelters more than 1,000 people in Northern Nevada each night. Your generous support helps us move people like Gena from homelessness to independence with love and dignity.
Gena experienced significant challenges throughout the past 12 years. She was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) in 2012. She returned to work in 2021 a few years later with a part-time job. But in 2023 her world was turned upside down again when she was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer that metastasized in her lungs. Gena went through intense chemotherapy, lost her job, her home, and nearly lost her life in the process.
Gena stayed with others during her treatment, but her new home became toxic after a few months. She was later abandoned with no place to go and no idea what to do. Gena shared,
“I knew there was no way I could live on the street. I was traumatized and alone…I went to the women’s shelter until I was blessed with a room at The Village on Sage Street…I had my own space to heal and figure out my next step.”
Gena moved-in to the Village in February 2024 and slept during her first 24 hours there. She was relieved to have a door with a lock. Gena stated, “The affordable rent gave me about half of my income to rebuild my life.” Gena was resilient. After a lot of hard work, Gena no longer needed her walking aids and her previous life sustaining medical appointments shifted to annual and routine visits. She enrolled in a 700 hour workforce development program with the State of Nevada.
She secured permanent housing in August 2024 and moved out of the Village. Gena now has a studio apartment and is soon transitioning into a one-bedroom apartment. Gena added, “Had The Village On Sage not been here for me I don’t know for sure where I would be, but I can only imagine. I am grateful that Village On Sage gave me the space to reclaim my health and my life back.”
Your gifts to VOA provide Gena – and hundreds of others – a pathway to independence.