HI’ILANI FROM HAWAII: A brand new mom

I am a native Hawaiian. I was born on the island of Oahu. I grew up with my parents, until they split up when I was nine. My parents separated and I moved to my grandparents with my dad, my sister, and my brother, after moving back and forth between locations and homes, with different family members.

I struggled through school and eventually got mixed up with the wrong kids, and got involved with drugs and alcohol. My life was a “party.” I was out of control. I was sneaking out of the house to stay at my boy-friend’s house, and lying to my dad about it. My dad told me not to “make babies.” But, with time, that’s exactly what happened. I was dating a twenty-two year old guy, drinking and doing drugs with him, when I found myself pregnant. I was still smoking cigarettes and marijuana, and drinking, until I was three months along.

I wanted to quit doing these things, but it was very hard. I eventually left my baby’s dad, due to his lack of interest, and knowing that the only way I could become a good mom would mean leaving Hawaii; I flew to my Auntie’s home in Oregon. She took me to a Pregnancy Resource Center in Sandy, where I found out about Bethany House. I quickly had an appointment for an interview, and immediately knew that this was where I needed to be.

Bethany House has done so much for me, like helping me to get the counseling that I needed. At Bethany House I have learned to budget and do money management, which really helped me out. Here I have learned about parenting, and house-keeping. I’m still working on learning to manage responsibilities, and good time -management. I’ve learned how to approach people, and am learning to improve my communication with others. Relationship building is a big deal here, and I have made some life-long friends.

Thank you Bethany House!