As a resident of the Next Key Apartments, Michelle F. has a new soundtrack for life.
“This is the first time I have been hopeful about my future in so long,” says Michelle, who first came to Homeward Bound through the Transition to Wellness medical respite program in 2013.
This summer, her soundtrack is going from simple hope to full-throated inspiration through Merola Opera’s Student Membership Program, which allows students to experience the San Francisco Opera’s renowned fellowship program.
“It is incredibly inspiring as a singer,” says Michelle, who has been singing and performing classical music locally and internationally since 2003. “I never thought of having this opportunity.”
For now, she’s rehabilitating her own voice after years of health problems that stemmed from a car accident in 2002. Between medical bills and legal appeals involving her disability benefits, her savings ran out.
Life veered between medical appointments, ambulances, emergency room visits, long hospital stays, and eventually a skilled nursing facility. Finally she gave up her apartment: “I didn’t think I’d make it out of the hospital to go back. My illness had reached a life-threatening point.”
When Michelle finally turned the tide toward recovery, she had nowhere to get back on her feet. Through the Transition to Wellness program, she was connected to the full range of support services at Homeward Bound. The program is a collaboration between local hospitals and service providers to offer shelter for people leaving medical facilities without stable housing.
“What was I going to do? I had no home to return to. My health was still very fragile and I developed mobility problems which required the use of a wheelchair. I desperately needed safe, stable housing immediately, as well as support from friends and the community in order to get my health –and life– back on track,” she says.
As her health advanced, Michelle moved to New Beginnings Center and then to the Next Key Apartments. She’s attending College of Marin to refresh her education and participate in their adapted physical education program. She earned a master's degree in clinical psychology in 2002, a month before the car crash that impacted her health.
Michelle's goal is renewing her career as a Marriage and Family Therapist, working with children and families affected by trauma, abuse, and domestic violence. Good health remains her top priority.
Her summer will be filled with music and learning thanks to the Merola program, which admits student members to master classes arranged for its 39 fellows – opera singers preparing for the big stage – with famous professionals from around the country, as well as free entry to all summer opera productions.
“Ideally I would love to sing classical music with a symphonic chorus,” she says. “There’s no end point.”
Homeward Bound has been a critical springboard, Michelle says. “They have truly given me a launching point and a second chance at life, which I honestly couldn’t even imagine at this time last year.
“They’ve been instrumental in my ongoing medical recovery, giving me a chance to heal and create a better life where I return to the work I love – helping other people heal.”
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