It was a hot summer night and Helen Mwaluko was coming back home after a long day at work as a home health aide. She felt disoriented and not quite herself. She had never felt like this, so she took herself to the hospital. There she was diagnosed with severe depression and exhaustion. She would stay in Mt. Sinai Hospital for nearly a month and unfortunately, lost her job.

The 54-year-old single woman, who lives on her own at the Upper East Side neighborhood of Manhattan, came to Goodwill’s Harlem PROS program in September 2023 after losing her job as home attendant the previous month. The Mt. Sinai Hospital outpatient clinic where she receives her psychiatric medication referred her to the Goodwill program. She comes to PROS every day of the week for 3-4 hrs.to attend groups, receive individual counseling, and to meet with her counselor, who provides her job search support.

Helen is very artistic and does art pieces with markers and pencils. She has offered to start a Peer Origami group to teach her program peers.

Thanks to Goodwill’s intervention, Helen is no longer isolated and has found a community. She has learned the importance of balancing work and her personal life. Now she is ready to work and has a clear career path. Helen tells us how Harlem PROS has helped her put her life back on track in this clip

To learn more about the Harlem PROS services and eligibility, please email services@goodwillny.org

Story submitted by the Harlem PROS team:
Daisy Tan, LCAT, Assistant Program Director.
Jeffrey Malone, LMHC, Program Director.