Purses

This was written by a fellow Denver Mothers & More member... I thought it could not have been put any better, so I wanted to share it!

My mom loves to tell the story of when I was a little girl and I thought that anybody carrying a purse was somebody’s mother. One day we were in our front yard when two teenage girls walked by carrying purses. My mom was horrified when I yelled out “Hey, where are those mothers going?”

Now I’m much older and have a toddler of my own, who has also has a knack for saying the “right” things. As a grown woman I now realize that a purse really is the ultimate symbol of womanhood, as well as motherhood. It’s like a little magic bag of tricks that we carry around with us that holds ALL the answers. In any given purse you will find a wallet full of independence, the car keys to our freedom, a lipstick tube of self-esteem, photographs of the people closest to our hearts and maybe a cell phone filled with life-lines. If you look in a mommy’s purse you might find a few additional magic fix-it’s, like a band aid or a juice box.

The Mothers and More group that I belong to will be hosting a brunch next month for the 90 + woman who are residences of The Haven House here in Denver. As part of this special day for them, we’ll be giving each of them a purse.

The Haven is an 90-bed Modified Therapeutic Community (MTC) located in Denver, Colorado for women, mothers and their infants. Licensed by the Colorado Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division (ADAD), the program offers long-term, intensive treatment for clients with addictions. Many of the clients are referred from the Department of Human Services, the criminal justice system and homeless shelters.

Established in 1992, The Haven was the first program in Colorado to accept infants into residence while their mothers received substance abuse treatment – keeping children out of the foster care system. This unique program has shown great success with over 90 percent of mothers who enter The Haven remaining drug, alcohol, and crime-free two years after completion. Haven clients typically stay nine to 12 months in residential treatment, followed by an additional 12 months of outpatient MTC treatment services.

Maybe I was onto to something at that young age. Okay… not every woman carrying a purse is a mom, but every mom should have a purse! I am asking all my friends and family to donate a new or gently used purse, so we can provide each of these young women (average age 18 to 25) a symbol of the future ahead of them. If you are here in Denver, please let me know if you have a purse to donate and I’ll make arrangements to get them from you.

If you don’t live in Colorado that’s okay, go grab your purse and make a donation (they like money too). Their website is:
http://www.havenfriends.org/donations/