The alarm sounds at 5:00 am. Jim is already awake. He flips the alarm off, showers quickly and heads to the kitchen to pour cereal and line up backpacks, shoes, and jackets for school. With those duties completed, he heads down the hall to wake his three small kids. They need to be up, dressed, fed and out the door before 6:15 am so he can punch in at the job site and be ready to work before 7:00 am.

Looking back, he says he should have seen it coming. But, he believed his wife when she said she could kick a drug habit on her own. He regrets his naivety. He regrets the emotional turmoil his kids are experiencing. He regrets that he did not see his wife’s abandonment coming.

Jim struggled with acceptance. It wasn’t the life he and his wife had dreamed about. They were supposed to tackle the journey of raising a family together. Instead, his wife made several poor choices resulting in a drug addiction. Jim believed her repeated promises of sobriety until he woke one morning to find his wife gone, his savings account reduced to a zero balance, and a future as a single father and the sole income for three small children on his proverbial plate.

Despite the loss, hurt, and betrayal, Jim believed his wife would come home. Time passed; his wife did not return. Jim fell behind on the bills. He was struggling as a single parent. He knew he had to find help.

Jim reached out and found not only financial guidance, but community resources for his new role as a single parent. Life is not easy, but Jim and his three small children are moving forward with hope. Jim has accepted help for his children from a faith-based community and he has taken control of his finances through financial literacy.