Once homeless single mom and her kids are now thriving

Claudette Riley | News-Leader

Springfield seventh-grader A.J. Wilson confided in friends when she was about to switch schools or find a new place to live. But she kept the details to herself.

"I told them that I would be moving but I didn't tell them that I kept moving — that we're homeless and stuff like that," said Wilson, 12.

"We've lived in a ton of houses. We've lived with other people when we couldn't find a house. And, when we could find a house, we struggled with money and paying."

Andrew Jansen/Springfield News-Leader

The Pershing Middle School student was among 2,283 children and teens in Springfield Public Schools — nearly 10 percent — to meet the federal definition of homelessness in 2018, the most recent census data released by the state.

Five years ago, Springfield's tally was 978.

"We are definitely seeing an increase in numbers," said Lynn Schirk, a homeless liaison who oversees the district's Office of Students in Transition. "We are doing a lot better job identifying them."

Andrew Jansen/Springfield News-Leader

Under the federal McKinney-Vento Act, students meet the definition of homelessness if they lack a "fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence." That includes students who are staying in hotels, motels, cars and emergency shelters. However, the majority are "couch surfing" or "doubled up" with another family.

The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education reported a dramatic increase in homeless students. There were 36,055 enrolled in 2018, more than triple the 11,977 reported five years earlier.

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Of the 2018 state tally, 30,055 students were "doubled up." There were 2,763 students in shelters, 2,418 in hotels and motels, and 611 without shelter, meaning they are likely sleeping in tents, cars or parks.

Springfield reported the third-highest number of homeless students in Missouri in 2018, behind the St. Louis and Ferguson-Florissant districts.

While the numbers are smaller, several Ozarks districts have also reported an increase. For example, Branson reported 743 homeless students in 2018, up from 490 five years earlier.

Wilson has had stable housing for the past year. She has been able to attend Pershing for two consecutive years. Her favorite subjects are math and science, and she joined a baking club.

"I didn't have to start in the middle of school when everyone else has been longer than I have and then have to move schools again," she said.

Andrew Jansen/Springfield News-Leader

A year ago, Wilson moved into a two-bedroom apartment just south of Battlefield Road with her mom, Kristina Hazeltine, and her younger brother, Deacon. There, she hung up images of the Eiffel Tower, a landmark she dreams of visiting.

"I got to put my own decorations and choose the colors and the things that I wanted in my room," she said.

Kristina Hazeltine said she never wanted her children to experience the uncertainty that plagued her childhood in Ohio. She said her family was ripped apart by alcohol, drug and physical abuse.

"We were evicted. We'd go through periods without electricity, periods without water, periods without food. It was just really rough," Hazeltine recalled. "For me, going to church, going to school were especially important, anything I could do to get out of the house."

Andrew Jansen/Springfield News-Leader

At the time, she vowed to never put her future children through the same upheaval.

At 13, she started drinking beer and wine coolers with family members and graduated to marijuana and prescription pills. Pregnant at 16 with Wilson, she dropped out during her sophomore year.

"I couldn't afford the child care while I was in school," she said. "And I wasn't aware of community resources at the time. It was not a good situation."

She earned a GED diploma and worked a series of fast-food and low-wage jobs to get by. She moved around a lot, and getting ahead proved unattainable.

In 2012, she gave her life to God and made church a priority. She felt called to ministry as a missionary and since her favorite pastors were trained at the Baptist Bible College in Springfield, she moved to the Ozarks and enrolled.

For two years, the single mother of two — son Deacon was a baby when she arrived — lived in a one-bedroom dorm for nontraditional students on campus. Partway through a degree, she opted to move off-campus to gain more space. She rented a house for $600 near Robberson Elementary.

"I was a full-time student. I was working full time and it was really challenging to balance it all," she recalled. "I got into a house that was more than I could afford and the utilities were $300 a month. I ended up evicted."

Andrew Jansen/Springfield News-Leader

She left Baptist Bible College and enrolled at the Victory Trade School, which provided housing for her family. She spent a year in the program, graduating with a certificate in early childhood education.

Hazeltine said she found work and housing and entered a relationship with her best friend. However, in mid-December 2017, any semblance of stability crumbled.

"I ended up losing my housing, totaled my car, lost my best friend and my job all within five days," she said. "I hit bottom."

She briefly moved into a hotel.

"At that point, I was like, 'Whoa, we are legitimately homeless,'" she said. "I didn't know what to do."

She briefly moved in with friends and leaned on the support network at James River Church, where her family attends services. She said her life started to turn around when she asked for help from the Springfield district.

Hazeltine learned her children, and others considered homeless under federal law, were eligible for extra services and protections, including:

The ability to Immediately enroll even if lacking the necessary paperwork

Free school meals

Free busing

The ability to remain enrolled in their "home" or original school, even if the family moves to another attendance area in the district

Access to health, counseling and other services offered at school

File photo

She became connected to Springfield's homeless liaison Lynn Schirk, who had obtained a federal grant through the McKinney-Vento Act that provided $450,000 over three years to expand the help available to families.

"With that grant money, we hired two social workers to provide ongoing support services to our families experiencing homelessness, particularly those families experiencing the highest barriers to stability," Schirk said.

Earlier this month, Schirk said the recent uptick indicated more help was needed. "The school district did allow us to hire a third social worker."

There are students who qualify for homeless services in every school in the Springfield district. However, she said there are others who need help but will not reach out to a school counselor, nurse or teacher.

"In elementary, they are much more likely to disclose what their home situation is like," she said. "As youth get older, they tend to keep that information more private."

The Springfield district works with community partners to provide school supplies to low-income children; there is a full-time clothing and shoe bank located at Study Alternative School; multiple schools offer free breakfast programs; and there are a growing number of schools that offer mobile clothing closets and food distribution.

Hazeltine, in search of stability, worked closely with district social worker Michala Boehm. Together, they identified steps in what Hazeltine described as the "slow process of rebuilding."

"It was awesome to have that support system. She really just became a cheerleader for me. She showed me how to budget and she showed me basically adult stuff," she said.

With Boehm's help, she filled out resumes and applications and landed a better-paying job in insurance. She set up a chore chart and "command center" to get organized in her home. She started working on saving money and rebuilding her credit.

"Knowing I had that support and knowing I had these goals made me chase hard after them," she said.

Andrew Jansen/Springfield News-Leader

The family has a sparse but tidy apartment. On Monday evening, Wilson — who loves to cook — made a three-bean chili and the family sat at the dining room table, prayed and then ate dinner together.

After dinner, Hazeltine played a card game with her daughter and son. Deacon, 6, is a first-grader at Cowden Elementary.

"It is something they enjoy," she said. "It is something we strive for, but it's not something that happens every night."

Hazeltine said she no longer feels hopeless and wanted to share her story with the hope it will inspire others to ask for help.

"That support is vital, the one-on-one," she said. "I want to say it's possible, it's possible to overcome this."

She said her desire to enter the mission field remains, and she plans to revisit that after her children graduate from high school.

"Right now, my biggest goal is to be able to continue to provide for my family," she said. "I want to provide stability for them."

By the numbers

A look at the Missouri districts with the largest number of students considered homeless during the 2017-18 year. Numbers for the 2018-19 year are expected to be released by the state in the coming months.

5,328 — St. Louis

2,533 — Ferguson-Florissant

2,283 — Springfield

1,200 — Kansas City

964 — Independence

857 — Sedalia

818 — Hazelwood

743 — Branson

656 — Camdenton

649 — Normandy school collaborative

545 — St. Joseph

532 — Raytown

A look at the homeless numbers for Springfield's benchmark districts for a five-year period ending with the 2017-18 year, the most recent available:

Branson — 743, up from 490 five years earlier

Joplin — 239, up from 148 five years earlier

Willard — 31, down from 103 five years earlier

Nixa — 45, down from 70 five years earlier (highest was 115 in 2015-16 year)

Logan-Rogersville — 65, up from 60 five years earlier

Ozark — 45, down from 100 five years earlier (highest was 119 in 2014-15 year)

Republic — 284, up from 194 five years earlier

Springfield — 2,283, up from 978 five years earlier