“I struggled with asking for help, and MACV made it easy.” -Housed Navy Veteran April

At just 16 years old, April joined the U.S. Navy. She left for service right after high school and spent the next ten years in uniform. Service has always been part of her family’s story—though she never pressured her children to follow the same path, she’s proud that her family plans to continue the tradition.

After leaving the Navy, April built her life around her four kids: triplets and their older sibling. She worked hard to provide them with stability, safety, and the opportunity to succeed in school. But when housing fell through, she faced something she had never experienced before—homelessness.

“I had never faced homelessness before,” April remembers. “It was really scary. I started to shut down internally.”

Asking for help didn’t come easy. “I struggled with asking for help, and MACV made it easy. I didn’t feel like it was a burden,” she says.

With MACV’s support, April and her children never went a night without a safe place to stay. She was connected to hotel stays, transitional housing, and eventually her own place to call home.

Along the way, MACV helped April access food pantries, legal services, VA medical care, and benefits for which she was eligible but previously unaware.

“You treated me so well, and it was hard to believe all of this was for us,” April says.

Now, April is 46, and her four children are teenagers; she’s focused on growing in her career. By sharing her story, she hopes that other women Veterans—especially single mothers—will see that reaching out is a strength, not a weakness.

“As a female Veteran, you can admit vulnerability,” she says. “MACV is a safe place for us.”