Bridges To Moms helps homeless, expectant women find housing

BOSTON — Megan Sanon is a new mom and will enjoy her first Mother’s Day. Her daughter, Aimeethyst, is almost three months old.

“I was six months pregnant when I became homeless. I was bouncing from house to house for about three months until I ended up going into labor with her in February,” Sanon said.

She spent six days in the hospital after Aimeethyst was born but had no home to return to.

“The fact having her and still being homeless and not having anywhere to go was a very scary thing for me,” Sanon said.

That’s where Health Care Without Walls came in. The Boston non-profit works in partnership with Brigham and Women’s Hospital for a program called Bridges To Moms. It helps homeless, expectant mothers find a safe place to live during the first year of their baby’s life. The program was founded in 2016 by Dr. Roseanna Means.

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Yasmin Almonte is a community health worker and case manager at the Brigham. She helped Sanon find a safe shelter to live in while she was still in the hospital.

Bridges To Moms also provides vouchers to new moms for a meal at the hospital’s cafe whenever they’re there for an appointment or visit. For many women, that might be the only meal they eat that day.

“Every day when I look at my daughter, I still get surprised and look at myself and say, ‘wow, I have a baby and I wouldn’t change it for the world.’ I get to enjoy my first Mother’s Day. I wouldn’t ask for anything at all. I’m very excited,” Sanon said.

Since 2016, Bridges To Moms has worked with over 250 clients and assist 95% of them with housing search and support.

For more information on the Bridges To Moms program, click here.

Cox Media Group