Page 3 - Florida Sentinel 5-18-18

Feature
Former Homeless Youth Seeks To Help Others
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
Life for Maria Fabian has never been easy. Her mother died when she was 6, she never knew her fa- ther, she was a victim of sex abuse, and she was home- less at 16.
Instead of giving up, Maria is using events from her journey to help others. She has written a book enti- tled, “Invisible Inno- cence: My Story As A Homeless Youth.” Now, she has made it her mission to bring light to homeless- ness and do what she can to help.
A Tampa native, Maria said the sexual abuse with family members began when she was 6 and contin- ued for 10 years. When her aunt learned about it, she didn’t believe her.
“The whole family moved out of the house and
left me and my brother there.” She said a short time later, her uncle came back and told them they had sold the home.
“He was getting a check for me and said he would get us an apartment. But when I rejected his ad- vances, he stopped paying the rent. My brother left and said he couldn’t take any- more. So I was alone in the apartment.”
Maria was a senior at Hillsborough High School at the time. Although she was living in an apartment with- out electricity or water, she recalls being hungry was the worst part.
“I would eat free break- fast at school and then I wouldn’t eat again until the next day. I didn’t eat on the weekends. There were many nights that I was hungry, I was scared, and I would lay awake wondering if I could make it another day. But, it
MARIA FABIAN
broke me down and I told one of my teachers that I was homeless and that is when things began to turn around.”
After graduating from Hillsborough High School in 2008, Maria began her crusade to help other home- less youth.
When talking about the book, she said, “I became a writer because I wanted people to know that it is possible to come back from
being homeless. I want teens and young adults to know that there is life after being homeless; that there ishopeandawayout.I want them to know that there are people out there who will help you.
“My book will show that yes, it was very hard being homeless, but also that it is possible to overcome it. I wrote a book about my life as a homeless teen so that my story could be heard.”
Today, at 28, Maria is employed and working with organizations to help the homeless. She has become an author, and she is also a standup comic who per- forms during Open Mic Night at the Improv.
Her journey has had a profound effect on her life. However, she looks at the positive side of it. “Being a homeless youth made me stronger. It made me never want to give up on myself. It
gave me the ability to put myself in other people’s shoes. It humbled me and taught me to never take things for granted. Being homeless made me speak my mind more comfortably. It taught me not to give up, but to keep on pushing.
“It made me street smart and taught me to not let lit- tle things destroy me. It made me stay focused so that I could get out of that homeless situation.”
Maria has shared her story on FOX 13, and the Tom Joyner Morning Show. She met Sherry Shepherd and plans to move to California in the fu- ture, but she has to raise enough money to cover moving expenses and find- ing someplace to live.
Anyone wishing to pro- vide assistance to Maria can visit her go fund me page at www.gofundme.- com/caligoals.
FRIDAY, MAY 18, 2018 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 3-A