Kim met Greg through her brothers. They married in October of 1980 when she was 21 years old. Greg worked full-time while Kim drove a school bus and took care to their daughter. She and Greg also opened their home and fostered over 50 children during their marriage.
When Kim's adult daughter hit hard times, it was Kim and Greg who took their grandchildren in and raised them. Life was good. And then Greg was diagnosed with cancer. They initially gave him a month, but he fought hard for almost a year. However, the pain he endured was traumatic for the entire family. Kim says when she would lay down next to him at night, she could smell the radiation. Greg lost his fight and passed away in June of 2017.
But Greg was the glue that held the family together and he was the love of Kim's life. Kim shut down emotionally and denied that he was gone. "I kept expecting him to come home. I just couldn't allow myself to admit he was gone", she says. For four years she and her grandchildren dealt with Greg's death by not dealing with it. Kim acknowledges, "It didn't really sink in until I found out I was losing my house."
Because Greg had taken care of everything regarding bills and finances, Kim didn't know how and she was in such a deep depression that she ignored everything until it was too late. She rented a storage unit and when she and the kids were moving things into it, she had a heart attack. After tests, Kim found out she was in congestive heart failure and had blood clots in her lungs. After emergency surgery in 2021, Kim was in the hospital for quite a while. When she was released, she literally had no place to go. So, she lived in her car - which for someone in her condition, wasn't the best thing for her health-wise. Kim ended up being hospitalized three additional times and was not in good shape when she met Alex, from Greater Cincinnati Behavioral Health Services' PATH team in 2022.
"I was dying", says Kim. "I just didn't know what to do or where to go." A hospital social worker reached out to Alex hoping she could help Kim. According to Alex, "Kim left school at a young age and didn't believe she was smart enough to take care of things. So, she didn't."
Alex helped Kim get into local shelters while she worked on finding her permanent housing. She also helped Kim's granddaughter. "It was hard for Kim", says Alex. "She went from having a beautiful home with a garden she loved, to living in her car. She was ashamed. This wasn't supposed to happen."
It took almost a year but eventfully Kim was able to move into her very own apartment and she's started a garden on her back patio. Alex also connected Kim to senior services, meals on wheels, and home health care while she was recovering from her illness. Kim has nothing but praise for Alex and Greater Cincinnati Behavioral Health Services. "I love Alex. She has such compassion for the work she does and the people she helps. GCBHS has been great to me. Now I can live in peace."
Alex also helped one of Kim's grandchildren get back on her feet as well. She reports they all have stable housing and employment so now Kim doesn't have to worry about them either. "GCBHS and Alex gave me my life back. She encouraged me to get up and live again."
If you would like to support the efforts of our outreach teams you can make a gift online or contact Ron Cropper, GCBHS Development Director at 513-354-7054.
Learn more about the people PATH helps, like Fran.
