I have been challenged with addiction for 10 years, and have been in and out of outpatient treatment and detox several times – but I would always relapse.
When I arrived at Morning Star, I was at the lowest point in my life. Things were spiraling out of control. My four children had been taken from me and placed in foster care with a family member. And then I learned that I was 5 months pregnant.
I arrived with the worst attitude in the world. I was just so angry all the time. But at Morning Star, I started to reflect and gain clarity. I realized that I was hurt and angry with myself. And that’s when the healing began. Everything had been a fight up to that point. But I had nowhere to run – I had to face my problems.
Morning Star helped save my life. They never gave up on me.
Every interaction with my counselor and every staff member helped prepare me to re-enter the world clean and ready to thrive.
I attended treatment 5 days a week, attended a medical assistant program, and became certified in a workforce development program for nontraditional roles for women. And I learned that I am worth it! From now on, I show up, set up, and remain teachable.
When my baby, Liliana, was born, I can’t express how much the onsite child care at Morning Star II helped in my recovery. It made it possible for me to go to treatment, attend school, and focus on me. The structure kept me accountable for being a parent and prepared e for the real world.
I knew I was finally on a path to a better life when I left Morning Star. The court saw the improvements in me, too, and my children came back home to me. I never thought that would happen. Today, thanks to Morning Star, I have a home and my family lives under one roof.
I still visit the program to let them know of my progress. My goal is to be fully self-supported. I know there will be obstacles ahead of me. But I am prepared to take it one day at a time.
Ask hockey legend Adam Graves about SCO, and the retired New York Ranger doesn’t talk about what he’s done for the organization. He talks about how lucky he is to be a part of it.
His passion for helping families originated early on. Adam’s parents took in 30 foster children. “I was fortunate to have foster brothers and sisters,” he says. “It strengthened my family. So it was natural to be involved with an organization that does such wonderful work strengthening families.”
In 1991 Adam dove right in, hosting holiday parties, committing his time and money to benefit children and families in SCO’s Family Dynamics program in Bedford-Stuyvesant and Brownsville, Brooklyn.
His involvement deepened in 2006 when Madison Square Garden (MSG) founded the Garden of Dreams Foundation to “make dreams come true for kids facing obstacles.” In the decade since, Garden of Dreams has provided life-enriching experiences to thousands of children in SCO programs: skating with the Rangers, going backstage at Radio City and attending countless games. But Garden of Dreams doesn’t just open their doors to SCO. Players come to SCO too, passing out holiday gifts at SCO’s Morris Koppelman Early Childhood Center; running a basketball clinic at the Ottilie Residential Treatment Facility and hosting a summer barbecue at the Flushing Family Residence for homeless families.
Although retired, Adam remains active in SCO events. “These programs strengthen families and enrich kids’ lives. That’s what SCO does on a day-to-day basis. SCO embodies what we’re doing at the Garden of Dreams,” says Graves. “Everyone in the MSG family – every employee – they’ll say Garden of Dreams is the single most important thing we do.”
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We provide
24,000
families and individuals with support services and community activities
87%
of young adults in foster care (18+) are enrolled in school or working