ADVERTISER CHRISTMAS FUND
Single mother, children sleeping on the floor
By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Staff Writer
Since leaving American Samoa a year ago for a better life in Hawai'i, 23-year-old "F.S." has been stung by rejection and poverty.
"I didn't know I was pregnant when I left," said F.A., a single parent who gave birth to her second son seven months ago. "Once the baby came, I couldn't work. I'm dying to work but my family members here won't help me watch my kids."
F.S., the third of five children, thought she could count on a few hours of babysitting from her older brother and sister, both of whom are single, if she got a job. "They said they had their own lives to live," F.S. said. "If my life gets better and they come to me for help, I'll be there to help them. They just don't know how it is to have children."
Helping Hands Hawai'i • Our anonymous Santa will match the first $25 of all contributions. • Donations to the Christmas Fund can also be dropped off at First Hawaiian Bank branches statewide. To donate canned food or household goods, call the Helping Hands Hawai'i Community Clearinghouse at 536-7234.
For now, F.S. is surviving on welfare assistance and food stamps. She and a friend split the $700 a month rent for a public housing apartment.
• Mail checks payable to The Advertiser Christmas Fund to:
P.O. Box 17328
Honolulu, HI 96817
F.S. said she had no future in Samoa. Her husband was unemployed, and they were living with his family. "It's hard to find work that pays decent money in Samoa," she said. "Your only real choice is the fish factory at $3 an hour."
Until she became a mother, F.S. didn't have much to worry about.
"I grew up on a military base, and life was always easy for me," she said. "I've realized since being in Hawai'i that you have to work hard to make it. But I don't regret coming."
F.S. doesn't have money for anything but essentials right now. What she would like is a bed so she and her young children can get off the floor.
"I'm afraid for my children," F.S. said. "The floor is cold, and there are roaches and bugs. I don't want the bugs to get in their ears and cause problems."
