Sammi’s Story: 2025 Annual Appeal

Sammi’s father was always in her corner. But when Sammi was just 16, her father passed away due to suicide, and she was left adrift.

The shock and grief led her down a dark path, and she found herself relying on drugs and alcohol to cope with the sudden and devastating impact that her father’s death had on her life. For years she lived in a haze of addiction. Stability, confidence, and a sense of direction were nowhere to be found despite her burning desire to be a good mother to her two children, Brightan and Tenni. She felt at war between two sides of herself: who addiction had made her and who she desperately wanted to be.

Sammi knew she needed help, and she had reached her breaking point. She wanted a better life for her children, and for the first time in a long time, she wanted to create a new beginning for herself too. She entered treatment and recovery programs, determined to leave her reliance on substances behind. Her hard work and dedication paid off, and Sammi was clean. Suddenly, she had fragile hope for her family’s future, and yet, since she still did not have a stable living situation to offer to Brightan and Tenni, they remained mostly locked out of her life.

Sammi was referred to the Front Door Agency’s Transformational Housing Program in 2022, and after learning about the various opportunities it offered, she knew this was what she had been waiting for. She applied in less than 24 hours.

From the moment Sammi walked into the Norwell Home, she knew that a change for the better had begun. Her case managers were with her every step of the way, holding her accountable, and not letting her even consider the possibility of failure. She later told the staff at the Front Door Agency that they stood beside her when she felt that she couldn’t stand on her own.

Her life, destroyed by her father’s passing, was slowly rebuilding around her. Safe affordable housing, ongoing case management, education opportunities, and a caring team along with fellow mothers around her gave her the growing hope and stability to continue moving onward and upwards. Sammi knew she wasn’t doing it alone anymore. She completed financial literacy courses and earned her CRSW license (Certified Recovery Support Worker). She knew her story was just one of many, and she wanted to pay her own success forward by aiding other women and moms facing the familiar road of recovery. She took advantage of every opportunity the Front Door had to offer her, and finally, Brightan and Tenni came home.

The simple gift of waking up in the same home as her children, in HER home, was something that Sammi thought she would never have. She could only dream about raising Brightan and Tenni in a safe and stable environment. Her life, once full of sorrow and devoid of hope, had transformed and was now bursting with joy and new possibilities, and as a homeowner, a successful future was now guaranteed. She had courage, strength, and people who fully believed in her.

When asked about the impact that the Front Door had on her journey, Sammi always says the same thing:

“They were in my corner.”

Today, Sammi is the proud owner of her first home and is working full-time in the recovery field. She is on track to graduate with a degree in Business Administration next year. She looks forward to creating happy memories with her children in their new home.