Page 7 - Florida Sentinel 1-5-16 Edition

Local
Sisters Use Their Life Experiences To Help Others
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
Albrina Hendry and her younger sister, Katina Hick- mon, had to grow up a lot faster than most children, mostly due to what they de- scribe as a dysfunctional fam- ily.
“Our mother was abused as a child, and later became a drug addict, and our father changed his priorities from taking care of his family to tak- ing care of himself,” said Katina.
“With our mother on drugs, we turned to our father, and he kicked us out of his house. We were 16 and 14 years old. There were things going on in our family that didn’t involve rais- ing the children.”
Albrina and Katina said their homeless experience was
horrible, but they had already started taking care of them- selves. To complicate things even more, Katina found her- self pregnant at the age of 14.
“We want people to know there is help out there for them and we are supporters and mo- tivators for all who want to do better in their life.”
The sisters founded an or- ganization called HOPEFUL, and their mission is to help the people others have either for- gotten or turned away.
As far as their parents are concerned, they both are de- ceased, but not before their mother was able to turn her life around.
“We were able to reconnect with our parents before they passed, and we never had any hate in our hearts for them,” said Albrina.
During the time the sisters
From left to right: Albrina Hendry, Desiree, and her mother, Katina Hickmon.
were homeless, they said they were motivated to always keep going, and giving up was never an option.
Through HOPEFUL, the sis- ters said they try to give people the opportunities to know they have support.
“I think what sets us apart from some of the other groups helping the homeless is we help from the heart because of our past experiences,” said Al- brina.
“We all believe people de- serve chances to change and all they have to do is stay hopeful.”
Albrina said for them to be successful in helping others, they have to convince them to be the change they want others to see.
“It takes a lot of work, but it’s all worth it.
“Right now, we’re feeding more than 300 people a month (every third Saturday at the Salvation Army), and owe thanks to Paul and Leon at Sonny’s Barbecue, along with Mike’s Pies and other angels who believe in the power of change and that everyone needs help at some point in
their lives.”
“A lot of people think it
should be someone else’s re- sponsibility to help the home- less,” said Katina.
The sisters said they’ve run into a lot of homeless teenagers, and their numbers are greater than a lot of people know.
“We’ve even found some of our cousins out there,” said Al- brina.
“We’re so thankful for the support we’ve received, and God has given us the strength to help ourselves and others.
On February 16th, the sisters have planned an event. They can be contacted at (813) 793- 1311, or check out their Face- book page for more information about their organ- ization and their schedule. You can also visit www.GiveHope To All.eventbrite.com.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 5, 2016 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 7