By Sriya Reddy
The Dallas Morning News
Jayla Ned was 18 years old when she found herself pregnant and sleeping on park benches. After two weeks of searching on library computers for a place to go, she stumbled upon Viola’s House, which took her in that same day.
Now, at 20 years old, she has a job and her own place where she can support her two children. She attributes her success to the time she spent at Viola’s House.
In a dark grey dwelling situated behind Cornerstone Baptist Church, Viola’s House provides housing and support services for teen mothers. The women that stay at Viola’s House typically get assistance to finish high school, attend trade schools, and have access to the resources they need to thrive. Since 2015, the organization has housed about 240 mothers and their infants.
Every Tuesday, Viola’s House has a community day where mothers of children under the age of three can come and receive supplies such as diapers, clothing and formula. In the fall Viola’s House will open a baby thrift store where mothers of children up to three years old can receive a voucher and pick out clothing for their kids.
As a former teen mother herself, founder Thana Hickman-Simmons is committed to providing this demographic with the support they need to thrive.
“I see a piece of myself in so many of them,” Hickman-Simmons said. “It’s funny because a lot of times they look at me and think I’m just a director. Most of the time I can tell them exactly what they’re feeling and going through because I’ve been there. It makes a big difference once they know you can relate.”
At the age of 17, Hickman-Simmons had her first child. She was a professional harpist at the time, and already began taking college classes. Having a child deterred her path, but Hickman-Simmons said that this was the path she was meant to be on.
She still was able to finish high school and get a degree because Hickman-Simmons had her parents, her sisters, and her godmother Viola Paris. Hickman-Simmons had a support system, but many Viola’s House clients don’t have that.
“100% of the girls that step in through these doors have a dysfunctional mother,” said Hickman-Simmons. “We step in as their village to offer what they need and become what they need,”
A village is exactly what Ned got when she arrived. Ned described everyone who worked with her during the year she lived at Viola’s House as her auntie or her second mother. She said they always push her to do the right thing.
“They’re like family,” Ned said. “That’s how I feel about everybody. Everybody that works here. When I come it’s like coming to see my family.”
Hickman-Simmons named Viola’s House after her godmother, Viola Paris. She spent countless afternoons and weekends at her godmothers and came to Viola for any advice she needed. Hickman-Simmons said that Viola was her village and her safe place.
“It’s the same concept here,” Hickman-Simmons said. “These girls can’t live here permanently, but we want them to know that this is a safe place, this is a safe house, and outside of their parents, we are their village.”
Although Hickman-Simmons has a good relationship with her own parents, she wanted the girls she works with to know that they don’t have to be family for her to look out for them.
A native of Chicago, Hickman-Simmons moved to Dallas in 2007 to find a more stable life for her and her children. She got a job with AAA and is now a catastrophe manager.
When Hickman-Simmons first began her work in the DFW area she had a mentorship program for teen mothers in the Plano and DeSoto school districts, but she quickly realized the girls she mentored had more immediate needs.
“The curriculum was great, right, but they wanted to know where they could sleep, where they could get diapers, where they could get their immediate needs met,” Hickman-Simmons said. “Not the long term mentoring program that I was trying to provide to them.”
That’s when Hickman-Simmons said she had the crazy idea for a residential home.
Viola’s House grew from two beds in a small apartment owned by Cornerstone Baptist Church to a two-story house that can accommodate up to six women and their babies. Now they are hoping to add a secondary house for more incoming mothers.
“We realized that bringing the residential component to Cornerstone would be a game changer for the organization because of the reality that many young ladies were homeless and pregnant,” Pastor Chris Simmons with Cornerstone said. “Over the years, Viola’s House has been able to assist a number of these young ladies and they have found stability in their lives which might not have otherwise been the case.”
Pastor Simmons said that many of the mothers coming out of Viola’s House now work and volunteer with Cornerstone as a way to give back to their community.
“There are so many examples of young ladies who are now living on their own, raising the children, completing both their high school education and working because of the support that Viola’s House has been able to offer,” Simmons said.
Ned comes back to visit Viola’s House at least three times a week despite having her own place. She said she just feels comfortable there.
“This place is a sanctuary for young moms,” Ned said. “Even if you don’t stay here, you can always come here if you need help.”
HOW TO HELP
Donations to Viola’s House can be sent to Cornerstone Baptist Church ℅ Viola’s House’s. Right now, the organization’s greatest need is diapers as it frequently runs out of larger sizes (4-6) and pull ups.
This story, originally published in The Dallas Morning News, is reprinted as part of a collaborative partnership between The Dallas Morning News and Texas Metro News. The partnership seeks to boost coverage of Dallas’ communities of color,
particularly in southern Dallas.
