Once in a While the System Works
This is a great story - the subject, a mentally ill single mother, utilized all kinds of services from a women's shelter to social services to a HUD apartment. Shame on those who want to cut these services. They are vital to creating a fair and just society.
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Mother, overcoming mental illness, yearns for her daughters
By ABBY GRUEN FOR THE JOURNAL NEWS (Original publication: November 24, 2004)
MOUNT VERNON — Lynn MacArthur wants her 6-year-old twin daughters back.
MacArthur, who suffers from bipolar disorder, lost her apartment and custody of her girls four years ago, about the time she was committed to a psychiatric hospital. Now, with the help of a number of social-service agencies, she has been having overnight visits and is getting closer to having the twins, Laura and Lorraine Viruet, move in permanently.
"Getting my family reunited is all I want," MacArthur said. "I've come a long way, and it's been rough. I'm just grateful to all the people and support services that continue to help me with my life now."
Finding an apartment and stabilizing her illness are MacArthur's first steps toward getting her children back. She is fortunate to be one of the 10 mentally ill adults out of 712 qualified referrals this year to be placed in Shelter Plus Care housing in Westchester County.
Funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the program subsidizes housing for the mentally ill, with treatment and support services such as psychiatric visits or therapy and weekly caseworker visits included.
http://www.tinyurl.com/6m9op
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Mother, overcoming mental illness, yearns for her daughters
By ABBY GRUEN FOR THE JOURNAL NEWS (Original publication: November 24, 2004)
MOUNT VERNON — Lynn MacArthur wants her 6-year-old twin daughters back.
MacArthur, who suffers from bipolar disorder, lost her apartment and custody of her girls four years ago, about the time she was committed to a psychiatric hospital. Now, with the help of a number of social-service agencies, she has been having overnight visits and is getting closer to having the twins, Laura and Lorraine Viruet, move in permanently.
"Getting my family reunited is all I want," MacArthur said. "I've come a long way, and it's been rough. I'm just grateful to all the people and support services that continue to help me with my life now."
Finding an apartment and stabilizing her illness are MacArthur's first steps toward getting her children back. She is fortunate to be one of the 10 mentally ill adults out of 712 qualified referrals this year to be placed in Shelter Plus Care housing in Westchester County.
Funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the program subsidizes housing for the mentally ill, with treatment and support services such as psychiatric visits or therapy and weekly caseworker visits included.
http://www.tinyurl.com/6m9op
posted by Christine at Wednesday, November 24, 2004
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