Father Joe's Villages 2014 Annual Report (1) | Page 9

LIVES TRANSFORMED
In 2014, we served more than 1,600 veterans, supported nearly 1,800
children and provided affordable and transitional housing to more than
3,100 individuals. Anthony, Connie and Jim are just a few of the people
who shared their successes after the Village with us, and we are thrilled to
share their stories with you.

Before finding himself homeless, Anthony had lived in Temecula with his
father and sister. They chose that location because it was the midpoint
between San Diego, where their father worked, and San Bernardino, where
their mother lived. Anthony and his sister commuted daily to school in
downtown San Diego.
It wasn’t long before Anthony’s father fell mysteriously ill. Anthony and his
sister accompanied him to frequent hospital visits in both San Diego and
Tijuana. Increasingly, Anthony began to recognize the signs of his father’s
mental instability.
On what seemed to be an ordinary day, his father dropped them at school
and left for another checkup in Mexico. What made this day different? Unlike
the countless other doctor visits before it, this time, Anthony’s father did not
return. In fact, he never returned.
Despite the fact that they were worried for their father, both Anthony and his
sister knew they had to continue attending school. Their mother was unable
to support them on her own. Anthony and his sister were unable to identify
another stable source of support, so they couch surfed at friends’ homes.
After a few months, Anthony realized that this system was not working. With
the help of a high school staff member, they moved into Toussaint.
“Toussaint had a secure, healthy, warm environment that did everything to
meet our needs,” said Anthony. “It helped keep us safe from the streets and
taught us to become responsible adults.”

“While at Toussaint, I realized I wanted to contribute to the community that
truly helped me get through what could have been a severely depressing
situation. Now, I want to show fellow homeless teenagers that there is hope.”

Today, Anthony is a full-time scholarship computer science student at UCSD,
an undergraduate tutor, researcher and badminton club member. Anthony’s
sister is a singer and student at USD.

F AT H E R J O E ’ S V I L L A G E S

ANTHONY
Anthony and his sister moved into Toussaint Academy six years ago when
Anthony was a junior in high school.

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