A Grateful Mind is a state-wide network dedicated to fostering strategic initiatives to prevent and end homelessness, while building collaborative responses to address the needs of low-income and homeless persons where we are located. In our ever changing world, the faces of homelessness and poverty are also changing.
The faces we now see no longer portray the stereotypical image of being disheveled, grungy and illiterate begging on the corner with a cardboard sign. Our homeless and impoverished communities consist of individuals and families who are well educated; elderly, former top executives, veterans that have served our country and the invisible homeless-who look carefree, yet have no idea where they'll sleep at night...those that hide amongst us. These are our neighbors. Women with children, displaced veterans and the forgotten seniors...mentally fighting to survive, while struggling with what appears to be a never ending battle to get their lives on back on track.
Now more than ever, with the wavering and uncertain status our economy, members of our communities are still faced with low wage paying jobs causing them to not be able to pay market prices for rent; threats of evictions and fulfilled evictions from having to make difficult decision such as whether to pay their electric bill or buy food for their children…or whether to skip the food and get their life saving medicine; or gas to keep their car running so they can sleep in it with heat tonight. Everyday in someone’s life, in some part of the country, (possibly right next door to you), someone has to make these difficult life choices.
The mission of A Grateful Mind International is to provide immediate humanitarian relief to individuals and families who are experiencing a crisis; while providing them access to educational resources that will empower them to move beyond their crisis.
A Grateful Mind works to address the root cause of homelessness and scarcity of basic necessities
within our client base. Through our community outreach and partner agencies we provide Emergency Crisis Assistance and Educational Resources, Training and Tools to homeless and impoverished men, women and children to empower with a sustainable plan to transition and rebuild free from homelessness and inter-dependencies.
Our Founder...
Though formally educated, our Founder, Cindy was a young mother, young bride in an abusive relationship and found herself homeless trying to get out of it. She'd experienced the embarrassment, hurt, shame and feelings of helplessness when she finally asked for help. The need to have an understanding of resources with options and not be demeaned when asking for those resources when she encountered her life altering circumstances was pivotal to her strategic transition from homelessness. She states that she "wanted to treat others in need, better than she had been treated when she was in need." This is why she wanted our agency to be unique in providing our assistance to those who seek help from us. We are trained to be sensitive to each person, yet to treat each individual as a human being deserving of respect, despite their current crisis or where they lay their heads at night. This desire became the fiber of our organization’s foundation back in 2000.
After years of serving others while on her own painful journey, she created the programs for A Grateful Mind
with the thought of it being a gift of services & resources to an existing organization desiring to help homeless populations. However, after yielding many failed attempts to pass along her vision
to other ministries, A Grateful Mind International was quietly birthed right out of her small apartment, officially incorporated & founded in 2011
to answer what she calls a "divine mandate", when she finally realized the reason she couldn't pass on the vision's plans was because it was for her to fulfill the vision of mobilizing communities to help transition homeless, and impoverished individuals and families with children by restoring their hope within themselves with actionable steps, that would enable them to rebuild their lives with dignity, pride and purpose to move beyond their current crisis.
A Grateful Mind
is dedicated to preventing and ending cycles of poverty + homelessness through robust educational resources training modules, outreach and holistic support services to help individuals and families with children emerge from crises, on to paths of self-sufficiency with dignity, pride and renewed purpose.