{"id":1170,"date":"2021-09-24T17:17:17","date_gmt":"2021-09-24T17:17:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/?p=1170"},"modified":"2026-01-08T18:44:00","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T18:44:00","slug":"carlos-hope-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Carlos’ hope story: “I have a sense of community I’ve not felt anywhere”"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Friends like you helped Carlos find hope, healing and many reasons to be thankful.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Every year, homelessness takes hundreds of New Yorkers by surprise. Carlos is one of those people. His career began with success as a Wall Street broker, followed by a rewarding second chapter in Christian ministry. He spent three years overcoming alcoholism, achieving full sobriety for more than 12 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet even Carlos\u2019s former accomplishments couldn\u2019t shield him from the hardship that was to come. Last fall, while working as a full-time caregiver for his mom with Alzheimer\u2019s, he began having a serious conflict with a family member. He felt overwhelmed, isolated and tapped out financially and emotionally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sleeping on the subway \u2014 homeless, hungry and lonely<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t drinking, but my heart was starting to get hard emotionally,\u201d Carlos says. “I thought, ‘If I don\u2019t leave, I\u2019m either going to have a heart attack, or I may do something I\u2019ll regret.’\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Out of options to turn to for help, Carlos packed his bags and headed to the streets of New York City. He spent five nights sleeping in empty subway cars. \u201cI remember thinking, ‘What am I going to do? I have no one in the world,’\u201d he says. Carlos was also in physical pain from an arthritic hip which made it hard to get around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s when he remembered The Bowery Mission. He had been here to speak when he worked in Christian ministry and remembered the Mission\u2019s commitment to helping New Yorkers in need. When he called, not long after Thanksgiving, Carlos was encouraged to come for help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A warm welcome<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Immediately, he felt welcomed and cared for \u2014 from nourishing meals to a hot shower and a soft bed. He stayed at our overnight shelter for three weeks before entering the Mission\u2019s Residential Program. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

\u201cThat first night, I was grateful to have those worries out of the picture.\u201d \u2014 Carlos<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"Emergency<\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Very quickly he made good progress toward his goals for the future. Less than two months into the program, Carlos found a job and is back to work on Wall Street. He was also able to meet with a counselor to begin working through the pain of his past. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He has gained renewed strength from the Mission\u2019s community \u2014 including other men in the Residential Program, our staff and volunteers. Carlos says, \u201cRight now, I don’t even know what the world would look like without some of the people here. They’ve become like family to me. I have a sense of community I\u2019ve not felt anywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Resetting priorities<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis place gave me some time to see what is really important and that is Jesus Christ. To have pastoral support and classes available breathed new life into me,\u201d Carlos says. He has also reconnected with his kids, and that means the world to him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, he volunteers at the Mission when he can and plans to be here for Thanksgiving. \u201cIt\u2019s better to give than receive,\u201d Carlos says. \u201cAnd I have received a lot of love, a lot of healing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\"Carlos\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

\u201cI walked into the Mission thinking I have no one in the world. Now I\u2019ll be walking out with my kids on speed dial. If that isn\u2019t God, I don\u2019t know what is. God has been good to me in a way I can\u2019t even understand.\u201d<\/em> \u2014 Carlos<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

You can help others find a fresh start and true hope<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Your generous support<\/a>\u00a0helps give people like Carlos the opportunity to start fresh and have hope for a brighter future. Thank you for your compassion!<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Friends like you helped Carlos find hope, healing and many reasons to be thankful. Every year, homelessness takes hundreds of New Yorkers by surprise. Carlos is one of those people. His career began with success as a Wall Street broker, followed by a rewarding second chapter in Christian ministry. He spent three years overcoming alcoholism, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1171,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[36,37,66,46],"class_list":["post-1170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-homelessness","tag-hope","tag-hope-story","tag-mens-programs"],"yoast_head":"\nCarlos' hope story: "I have a sense of community I've not felt anywhere" - The Bowery Mission: Updates<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Friends like you helped Carlos find hope, healing and many reasons to be thankful.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Carlos' hope story: "I have a sense of community I've not felt anywhere" - The Bowery Mission: Updates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Friends like you helped Carlos find hope, healing and many reasons to be thankful.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Bowery Mission: Updates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-09-24T17:17:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-08T18:44:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"The Bowery Mission\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"The Bowery Mission\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"The Bowery Mission\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a0dd4078a640abd7c423110094f8e24c\"},\"headline\":\"Carlos’ hope story: “I have a sense of community I’ve not felt anywhere”\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-09-24T17:17:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-08T18:44:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":617,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Homelessness\",\"Hope\",\"Hope Story\",\"Men's Programs\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Stories\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/\",\"name\":\"Carlos' hope story: \\\"I have a sense of community I've not felt anywhere\\\" - The Bowery Mission: Updates\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-09-24T17:17:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-08T18:44:00+00:00\",\"description\":\"Friends like you helped Carlos find hope, healing and many reasons to be thankful.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":800,\"caption\":\"Carlos\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/2021\\\/09\\\/carlos-hope-story\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Carlos’ hope story: “I have a sense of community I’ve not felt anywhere”\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Bowery Mission: Updates\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"The Bowery Mission\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/the_bowery_mission_primary_trademarked.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/the_bowery_mission_primary_trademarked.jpg\",\"width\":975,\"height\":600,\"caption\":\"The Bowery Mission\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.bowery.org\\\/updates\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a0dd4078a640abd7c423110094f8e24c\",\"name\":\"The Bowery Mission\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/b18044fe6a7f2e30a3830d1ce27632f3d6f81a0afc29d3d186c068acaab85e54?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/b18044fe6a7f2e30a3830d1ce27632f3d6f81a0afc29d3d186c068acaab85e54?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/b18044fe6a7f2e30a3830d1ce27632f3d6f81a0afc29d3d186c068acaab85e54?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"The Bowery Mission\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Carlos' hope story: \"I have a sense of community I've not felt anywhere\" - The Bowery Mission: Updates","description":"Friends like you helped Carlos find hope, healing and many reasons to be thankful.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Carlos' hope story: \"I have a sense of community I've not felt anywhere\" - The Bowery Mission: Updates","og_description":"Friends like you helped Carlos find hope, healing and many reasons to be thankful.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/","og_site_name":"The Bowery Mission: Updates","article_published_time":"2021-09-24T17:17:17+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-01-08T18:44:00+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":800,"url":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"The Bowery Mission","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"The Bowery Mission","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/"},"author":{"name":"The Bowery Mission","@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/#\/schema\/person\/a0dd4078a640abd7c423110094f8e24c"},"headline":"Carlos’ hope story: “I have a sense of community I’ve not felt anywhere”","datePublished":"2021-09-24T17:17:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-01-08T18:44:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/"},"wordCount":617,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg","keywords":["Homelessness","Hope","Hope Story","Men's Programs"],"articleSection":["Stories"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/","url":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/","name":"Carlos' hope story: \"I have a sense of community I've not felt anywhere\" - The Bowery Mission: Updates","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg","datePublished":"2021-09-24T17:17:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-01-08T18:44:00+00:00","description":"Friends like you helped Carlos find hope, healing and many reasons to be thankful.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/IMG_6986_1200.jpg","width":1200,"height":800,"caption":"Carlos"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/2021\/09\/carlos-hope-story\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Carlos’ hope story: “I have a sense of community I’ve not felt anywhere”"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/","name":"The Bowery Mission: Updates","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/#organization","name":"The Bowery Mission","url":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/the_bowery_mission_primary_trademarked.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/the_bowery_mission_primary_trademarked.jpg","width":975,"height":600,"caption":"The Bowery Mission"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/#\/schema\/person\/a0dd4078a640abd7c423110094f8e24c","name":"The Bowery Mission","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b18044fe6a7f2e30a3830d1ce27632f3d6f81a0afc29d3d186c068acaab85e54?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b18044fe6a7f2e30a3830d1ce27632f3d6f81a0afc29d3d186c068acaab85e54?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b18044fe6a7f2e30a3830d1ce27632f3d6f81a0afc29d3d186c068acaab85e54?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"The Bowery Mission"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1170"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1170\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bowery.org\/updates\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}