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Doreen

Doreen is a 43 year old Hispanic woman raised in Coney Island, Brooklyn. She began volunteering at Amethyst as a student intern studying for her bachelor’s degree from Touro College. Once she had completed her undergraduate studies, she was able to get assistance through Amethyst to enroll in a master’s program.


I was born and raised in Coney Island and began getting high during the early years of my life. I saw Amethyst really making the difference in our community and I was pleased to see that Aida was really making things happen and I wanted to take part in the solution instead of the problem.


During my addiction, I had a daughter that I could not take care of….my sister took her on and gave me an ultimatum – either you get your life together or lose your daughter. I knew that I was not able to stop using on my own and I decided to get in a program. During that time I got my GED and enrolled in college and obtained my bachelor’s.

  



           

I saw people coming through this program, you know, that I got high with – I saw them come through this program and I saw the difference that it was making in their life and I wanted to be a part of that… Now, I am able to go into my community and, instead of being part of the problem, I’m part of the solution.
Doreen


Being at Amethyst I began to fully participate in the program and was able to develop some important skills. I realized that we were really making an impact in the community and as a result it also felt good when I read the letters of gratitude of people who we referred to treatment that completed and were really grateful for being clean.


I remember when Coney Island used to be completely drug infested with lots prostitution, and nothing but shooting galleries and empty lots. But ever since Amethyst started, I began to see some incredible changes amongst the prostitutes and drug addicts. They knew they now had a place to go to for help. I saw people coming through this program, you know, that I got high with, and I saw the difference the program was making in their lives and I wanted to be a part of that.


Amethyst afforded me the opportunity to learn about these things through the educational workshop series that they host. One was how to love myself. As a result, I am able to pass it forward. I was also able to gain the skills necessary to make a difference in my community and instead of being part of the problem; I’m part of the solution. And, through Amethyst, I learned about my addiction, substance abuse and HIV/AIDS.



I’ve been here [Coney Island] all my life, and they [the people in the community] seen the person I was, and they see all the changes in my life. They see what a difference Amethyst has made in my life because not only am I able to go out and do those things [outreach and presentations], but I also have a connection with the woman in here. We support each other as a team, we’re all able to come together and support the women of the community.




One time I took a break for a while and [my daughter] she tells me, ‘you can’t just stay home Mom, don’t you know the effect you’re having on the people that need your help? Come on, you go out there, you speak, you tell your story.’

Ibian
About three months later they had family day.  That’s when my mother, my daughter and my sister came to see me.  When I seen my (family) I got so emotional because when I saw my mother crying this time, it wasn’t like she was suffering, she was happy.  After rehab I was just overwhelmed with how my life changed for the better.  Aida invited me to do some volunteering at Amethyst which really gave me the structure I needed in my life at the time.  I had just finished an 18 month program on a Friday; Monday I started volunteering at Amethyst.  I started doing outreach and it’s great because I was born and raised here in Coney Island so people know me. There were women that I used to smoke crack with that were still using, and they knew me and I would tell them, ‘You can do it to, if I did it, you can do it.’    It feels good giving back, especially when you know, you’re making the difference; some people even thought I was dead.