Success Stories
Emerge ~ Ebony Austin
Ebony Austin knows what it’s like to bounce from home to home. After growing up with a mother who cared for foster children, Ebony moved in with her grandmother to break away from the increasingly cramped environment. When her grandmother passed away, Ebony repacked her bags to live in a studio apartment with her aunt. But again, the living situation became too tight, and Ebony realized it was time to make a change.
She applied for Emerge, a Hull House program that provides safe and affordable housing to homeless youths. Emerge not only provided Ebony with an apartment and paid a percentage of her rent, but also taught her how to budget her money to completely pay off her school loans in her first three months in the program. Now, as a full time student at Chicago State University and an Assistant Manager at Godiva Chocolatier, that independence she acquired through Hull House is still paying off.
The strict discipline of Emerge came at first as a shock to Ebony who, as a teen, was not used to controlling her finances. Budgets were implemented by her caseworker who would walk with Ebony to the bank to ensure her money was going to the right places. It was also her caseworker who pushed Ebony to obtain a full time position at Godiva. Intent on moving up in the company, Ebony began reaching her sales goals in record time, and before long her manager was eager to promote her to a top position.
Ebony, now 25, has a positive but realistic outlook on the future, a characteristic she credits to Hull House. She still employs the techniques she learned in the Emerge Program, – keeping a strict budget each month and saving to buy what she really wants – but only after her bills have been paid.
“Hull House gave me strength and opened doors. It’s not a situation where you’re set up to fail,” Ebony says. “Failure just wasn’t an option.”
Ebony is passionate about giving back—sometimes with chocolate—to those who have helped her. Ebony hires people at Godiva who are currently enrolled in the Emerge Program, taking on the role of those she has been so thankful for. “I give back because I was so grateful to Hull House. There are a lot of people out there who are struggling and who just need a chance,” she says.
Ebony’s future is as bright as her attitude. As a full-time college student, she is pursuing a degree in computer engineering. Balancing school and work can get stressful, but Ebony credits her perseverance to Emerge. “Life gets complicated, but I know what I want so I can push myself,” she says. “Hull House gave me the motivation to keep going.”
