Sammy's story

Sammy loves reading, especially Catherine Cookson novels. She had been a teacher in Dominica until she had a stroke aged 30. “I couldn’t go back to teaching.”
When she came to the UK six years ago, she couldn’t work as her immigration status was never settled.
“I was living with my grandfather.” Their home was destroyed by a fire. “I was sent to a hostel. I was worried all the time.”
“It was when I was in the hostel that I found out about Crisis. I came to the hotel in December and stayed for a month.” Sammy had her own room, where she was able to relax with a good book.
“My room was good. The food was excellent. The people working there, the volunteers – they were great.”
“I went to see the podiatrist who helped me with my feet and offered me shoes that have helped me. I had a cut on my foot. I didn’t have any good shoes, so they made a real difference.”
She was assigned a coach with St Mungos, who partnered with Crisis to deliver some of the advice in the Crisis at Christmas hotels. They helped her apply for the right to remain.
“I’m currently waiting for my immigration status to be settled.” She has somewhere safe to stay while her application is processed. “It’s nice where I am now.”
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