MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Tonya Smith proudly showed off pictures of her two daughter, Keirra and Haley, when WREG spoke with her.
“This first picture is actually of my daughters in Minnesota right outside of the Mall of America with the ice castle. This is us at Christmas of last year, here you can see we have a smile on our faces,” Tonya said.
These days, a huge smile is on Tonya’s face, but that wasn’t the case when she said she and her children lived a life of chaos in Minnesota.
“Life was hectic. I was homeless. My kids were not going to school. I wasn’t happy being a mother figure to them. Addiction took a toll on me a lot,” she said.
But the odds seemed stacked against Tonya when she was a child.
“I started smoking weed when I was 12. I had a couple of beers when I was 12 and became sexually when I was 12,” she said.
Tonya said drug use was almost unavoidable because her mom was addicted and they did drugs together.
“Once she found out, it was like, we can party together. She didn’t want me out on the street doing it and it became an at home thing,” Tonya said.
When she turned 17, her drug use went from marijuana to methamphetamine .
“It was just a way of life and something that supposed to be normal. I didn’t think there would be a problem from it,” Tonya said.
The chaos in her life continued. When Tonya was 21, she found out she was pregnant with her oldest daughter, Keirra.
“I was terrified when I was pregnant and the first thing my mom told me to do was have an abortion. I looked at her and said absolutely not,” she said.
Keirra was born, but she had a disorder called Cerebral Palsy. A few years later, Tonya had her second daughter, Haley. But things became more complicated when the father of daughters became abusive.
“Things got terrible. He started to become abusive and I was homeless,” Tonya said.
She said things really hit rock bottom when one of her best friends was murdered.
“My friend was murdered. I think my baby’s dad had something to do with the murder. I kind of drove myself crazy,” Tonya said.
In fear of her family’s safety, Tonya packed her bags, and she and her children boarded a bus to Memphis. When they arrived, she called the police and they recommended several shelters, but she wanted one where she could get help for addiction.
“I wanted treatment. I wanted to get clean. I wanted a sober life for me and my children. I wanted something better than where I was and they recommended here,” Tonya said.
They recommended the Salvation Army’s Renewal Place program.
“I was surprised of the emotional and physical release they do here, how they work with you through the pain and chaos,” Tonya said.
Her pain and chaos turned into love and happiness not only for Tonya, but also for her daughters.
“I’m starting to love me again. I’m starting to deal with what I need to deal with and it’s like a whole new me,” Tonya said.
It’s a whole new life for Tonya.
“I don’t know where I would be if I didn’t have the Salvation Army. I don’t know if I would be dead,” she said.
But Tonya is alive and her recovery is motivated by her daughters. It’s a picture of hope for a family helped by the Salvation Army’s Renewal Place.
“Renewal Place is like the number one treatment facility and loving family you could ask for. So, I’m glad we came to Memphis, Tennessee,” Tonya said.