“I’m not the same person I was two years ago,” Karla shares. Four years into her drug addiction, in 2010, she lost custody of her children. This devastating blow sent her spiraling deeper, and eventually, she became homeless. In 2014 after her first arrest, she spent five years in and out of prison due to drug charges. Once released, Karla returned to the streets. While she didn’t go back to jail over the next few years, she says she alone can’t take credit for staying out of prison. She says, “Someone was watching out for me.”
Everything changed on December 6, 2023. Karla was just days from losing her apartment. Returning to the streets was unthinkable and would be brutally cold this time of year. That’s when Karla had a real turning point in her life and made the decision to enter Ozark Recovery Housing, a sober living facility.
While at Ozark, Catholic Charities introduced Karla to Pawsperity’s program. Before then, with children to support and bills to pay, Karla never believed she could support herself financially. Inspired by a team member at Ozark who was also in recovery, Karla could see a future through Pawsperity’s job training and wraparound services. After entering our program, she met many women who had become financially independent as dog groomers. Their stories served as an example of what was possible.
She shares, “It is unbelievable all the energy that was poured into helping me. For the first time in a long time, Pawsperity made me feel that I had value and was worthy of help.” Karla credits the trust built between instructors, case managers, and students, along with the range of resources, including the life skills classes and the Family Residence, with making her completion of the program possible.
Karla says, “When setbacks and challenges happen, because they are going to happen, the team is there to teach you that one mistake doesn’t have to undo all of your progress.” When Karla stumbled, unlike in the past, it was the first time she knew immediately she didn’t want to return to her old life.
“Karla took full advantage of all the support and resources Pawsperity offers and put in the work to overcome her failure mindset about her past and changed her narrative (and future) to one filled with hope and success,” said Crystal Ralston, Pawsperity Case Manager.
Budgeting for unexpected financial setbacks are part of the Pawsperity curriculum, but without time to grow their savings, problems like unexpected car troubles can derail an early career. While students and new graduates are building their savings, they can request help from the emergency assistance fund. Instead of seeing these kinds of setbacks interrupt a student’s success, these safeguards are built into the program to ensure students can continue down their new path.
In August of 2024, as Karla was graduating from Pawsperity, her determination to turn her life around was tested once again. Her excitement about starting a career at Petco took a stressful turn when her car broke down. Because her new job wasn’t easily accessible via public transportation, Karla had to piece together different modes of transportation, requiring her to leave at 4:00 AM each morning. Pawsperity, together with several community partners, ensured Karla kept her job. Great Jobs KC helped with transportation vouchers and Missouri Vocational Rehabilitation, Church of the Resurrection, and Pawsperity’s alumni emergency fund assisted with the car repairs. To make matters worse, at the same time, she was having severe dental issues. Fortunately, Missouri Vocational Rehabilitation also covered muchneeded dentures, which were lifechanging for her confidence.
A couple of months later after overcoming these hurdles, and gaining even more self-assurance, Karla shared with the Petco store manager that someday she’d be interested in becoming a salon manager. With previous professional experience and solid grooming skills, her manager asked her, “Why not now?”
Amazingly, Karla graduated in August of 2024 and within a few short months in October of the same year, she transitioned from groomer to salon manager, supervising two other groomers. A year into her new role, she proudly shares that at 42 years old, for the first time in her life, she is supporting herself, paying her bills, and living in her own apartment—something she never thought was possible.
Over the next year, Karla is focused on staying grounded and continuing to grow, both personally and professionally. As a salon manager, she plans to keep learning and building her skills. More than anything, she hopes to give back—to support others the way Pawsperity supported her. She wants to pour into others the same belief that was poured into her. Karla’s message to Pawsperity is clear: “You are breaking the cycle. You are showing people who don’t think they are worthy of being loved, that they are loved (and supported) unconditionally.”
While Pawsperity knows its program works and definitely assisted Karla with getting to where she is today, we also know that our students often receive help from many other excellent nonprofit agencies across Kansas City. A big thanks to all of those organizations who were a part of Karla’s success and who continue to help countless others within our community.
We could not do what we do without the partnership of countless community agencies who contribute in many different ways to our students’ success. A special thanks to Bishop Sullivan Center, Great Jobs KC, Heartland Center for Behavioral Change, Journey to New Life, and Missouri Vocational Rehabilitation.
