A Journey of Hope - Lisbet's Story of Survival and Success
Lisbet came to the United States illegally with her husband. He was violent and abusive in their marriage right from the beginning. Her three children had to endure his violence and rage until he was finally deported after being arrested for domestic violence. Lisbet came to the San Diego Family Justice Center for help in 2009. At the Family Justice Center she found 25 agencies all together under one roof and she found a community of support and encouragement. She found friends. She found other women with children who needed support just like she did. Some were white. Some were black. Some were from the US. Some were from other countries. One of the Center’s partners was a local domestic violence shelter called Project Safehouse. Project Safehouse gave her a place to live with her kids. Two years later, other survivors at the Family Justice Center asked her to join VOICES, a committee made up of survivors advocating for system change and supporting the work of the Family Justice Center. She started telling her story publicly on television and to audiences throughout the community. As she shared her story, she found many with similar stories of abuse. A year after that, Lisbet’s three kids started attending Camp HOPE America - San Diego. Her children started finding hope in their own lives while going to camp each year with other children with similar experiences.
Lisbet was a high school graduate but had no other education. Employment prospects were slim for making a living wage. But she decided to set a goal of owning her own business. Her family knew the world of janitorial service as do many immigrants. In 2013, Alliance for HOPE International gave her a $3,000 micro-loan to help her start JCL Janitorial. She hired a few of her relatives and started building a business.
In 2014, Lisbet won the contract to have her company clean the very shelter, Project Safehouse, that she had lived in with her kids in 2009 after fleeing her abusive husband. Then, Lisbet decided she wanted to start advocating for other survivors and she started Proyecto Esperanza in partnership with Alliance for HOPE International and the Avon Foundation. Proyecto Esperanza became national model advocacy program for Latina survivors of sexual and domestic violence. Lisbet began taking college classes while her children all joined Camp HOPE San Diego – attending every year and continued to receive regular support from the agencies at the San Diego Family Justice Center.
Last year, Lisbet became a United States citizen. Today, Lisbet is an author, a motivational speaker, and works as the Hospitality Coordinator for the North County One Safe Place Family Justice Center in San Marcos, CA. She serves on the boards of multiple non-profit organizations and runs a Spanish-language VOICES Advocacy Group for survivors. Her children are thriving in school and in life. And she just co-authored a bestselling book called, 24 Chapters: Inspiring Stories of Hope.
