Lend a Hand: It hasn't been an easy life for Quincy mother of three - can you help?
Ten years ago, Christina Olson said emotional abuse by her first husband caused her to have a mental breakdown. But her love for her three children – Joshua, 20, Faith, 7, and Wyatt, 5 – compelled the now 38-year-old mother to seek help.
Today, even with financial hardship, life is better.
Given what Olson has lived through, her requests to Lend a Hand are simple: a railing for her 5-year-old’s bunk bed and a dresser. Her son Joshua is self-sufficient and Faith gets enough hand-me-downs, but there are none for Wyatt, who needs winter clothes and boots. Also, a new couch for the family and gas money for the car would be helpful.
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“I have to get the kids to appointments and gas is crazy," said the Quincy native. "I don’t do any traveling because gas is so expensive, but it would be nice to take the kids out once in a while.”
Olson said she suffered post-traumatic stress disorder from her first marriage.
“I lost myself. I was a prisoner,” she said.
Olson said venturing out always triggered severe anxiety.
“I was terrified I’d run into him or that he’d be looking for me,” she said.
Olson sought counseling from South Bay Community Services in Weymouth.
While Olson still struggles with anxiety, she and her family have benefitted, especially through Quincy Community Action Programs' Head Start program for her children.
“Therapy has been the world to me," she said. "I do in-home therapy because going out is an issue. But I’ve made great bounds, and Head Start really saved us. I went to the parent groups, classes, breakfasts, and socialized that way. Just talking and socializing really saved my mental state.”
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During the pandemic, Faith and Wyatt were required to arrive 30 minutes before Head Start classes. For a year and a half, Olson took her children every day by bus. A car ride would have been about five minutes, but catching two buses was an hour each way.
“I’d have to sit outside under a tree and have breakfast with them," she said. "It was time consuming.”
Lend a Hand provided Uber gift cards, which eased carrying groceries home from the market. Reduced bus time allowed Olson to pursue online classes.
Finally, she bought a used car.
“I got help from parents, I used my stimulus check and back child support," she said. "I finally got a cheap car. It has transmission issues, but my dad is mechanic.”
The car is a boon for taking Faith and Wyatt to appointments.
“She has speech delay issues, and he has ADHD,” she said.
Olson is proud of Faith’s talent for writing and passion for reading.
“She could really use more books,” Olson said.
Her son Wyatt loves Legos and puzzles. “He does puzzles so fast," she said. "He needs ones that are more challenging.”
How has therapy helped Olson?
“I work on my anxiety, which is the biggest thing. I learned tools like breathing, using distractions, why I do things from the past, how I can change my actions,” she said.
Money is tight and she’s managing. But she could still use more help.
A new couch, a dresser, a railing for a bunk bed, gas money, and kids' winter clothes and boots are her requests, and she’s hoping Patriot Ledger readers will Lend a Hand once again.
About Lend a Hand
Lend a Hand, The Patriot Ledger's annual holiday charitable program, began in 1998 and has raised more than $3.3 million to help South Shore families and people in need. Working with three established community service agencies – Quincy Community Action Programs, South Shore Community Action Council and Aspire Health Alliance – Lend a Hand has presented the compelling stories of people in need and invited readers to open their hearts and wallets to help.
Here’s how you can help Lend a Hand
• Clip the coupon published in The Patriot Ledger, fill out all the fields, write a check or money order and mail it to:
Lend a Hand
The Patriot Ledger
3 Webster Square
PMB #467
Marshfield, MA 02050
• Call our friends at Ansaphone at 617-424-9825 between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.
• Donate securely online through PayPal. Search: Ledger Lend a Hand Foundation
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Lend a Hand and QCAP Head Start work to help Quincy mother of three
