Avery finds connection and opportunity after foster care and homelessness

For most of his life, change has been the only consistent part about Avery’s housing situation. 

Before landing at Dallas Hope Charities, Avery lived in a Longview homeless shelter, three foster homes, an abandoned apartment, hotel rooms and the streets of Houston, Texas. 

When he was younger, Avery lived with his grandmother but she passed away when he was 13 years old. Two months later, his house burned down and CPS deemed his grandfather as an unfit caretaker due to his dementia and medical needs for cancer treatment. 

“[ Being homeless ] made me realize a lot of things. It made me a lot more grateful for what I have especially since I’m here now.” 

Issues with the last foster family began when Avery’s foster parents called for a house meeting about chores, which escalated into an argument about Avery’s attitude. The foster mom told him that if he didn’t like their family then he could leave.

“I had a really, really, really bad fight with my foster mom – verbal for me, but she ended up pulling my hair, which hurt really bad,” Avery said. “And then after that, I was like, you know what? F this crap, I’m just gonna get my stuff and leave. Which I actually did. I had no idea where I was going but I left anyways.”

Avery’s foster mom called the cops and they stopped Avery to ask if he hit her. When Avery said no, that the foster mom had hit him, the cops instructed Avery to stay away from the house that night but return in the morning. A friend of Avery’s got him a hotel for the night.

“[The next morning] I got picked up by [my} foster mom, went back to the house, and then I was looking for somewhere to go because I just did not want to be there,” Avery said. “Even though she said she would still keep me and I was like, I don’t care. I’m still going to leave.”

After a few days back in the foster home, Avery had found a friend of a friend to live with. 

“I got all my stuff, packed it up, put it in my foster mom’s car and we went to his apartment,” Avery said. “As soon as I get there, he- I go into where he lives and it was literally an abandoned apartment. And I was like. OK, can’t go back now so I still stayed because I didn’t want to make him feel bad.”

The two stayed together for less than a month until Avery made a joke that didn’t land well and Avery had to leave. Then Avery stayed with other people he met through a friend but he immediately picked up on the transphobia.

“I never told them that I was bi or when I identified as trans,” Avery said.  “And then they kicked me out. I stayed on the streets that night, and then I woke up and then I went to the McDonald’s I was nearby. And then my caseworker- CPS caseworker got me a bus ticket to get to Longview.”

The Longview shelter was clearly intolerant of LGBTQIA+ folks so Avery wanted to leave.

“Everybody would keep on asking if I was gay or if I was bi,” Avery said. “And I’m like, it’s not your business because you’re just going to make fun of me anyways. And then it was just like, really, really stressful because… an older man, he was fetishizing me and just saying really bad stuff to me.”

The staff didn’t seem to prioritize Avery’s well-being nor care about how he was treated there. Another queer person at the shelter told Avery about Dallas Hope Charities.

“As soon as I hit the website I had a really good feeling about it and I just instantly signed up.”

Avery took a train and two Ubers to get from Longview to Dallas. Once in the Hope Center, Avery was able to connect with other residents and settle into his new home. 

“I feel like I’ve become a bit more positive person,” Avery said. “My mental health has been a little bit better. I’m a lot more Social than I have been.”

Avery enjoys the therapy and the service meeting resources at DHC. He is looking forward to getting more testosterone, finding a job, applying to college and getting his driver’s license and a car. 

“I want to go to the same college as my boyfriend but he wants to go to Baylor and that’s a very bad idea for him,” Avery said. “I heard it’s a very homophobic school and he’s gay and I just don’t want to see him hurt.”

Avery would like to live in a dorm or rental house with roommates after his time at DHC. He’s interested in attending a public university to study choir, theater, or marketing. Avery also enjoys drawing and is currently building a portfolio to sell his artwork.

“When I became homeless it just became hard for me to ground myself to do it,” Avery said. “So there’s some things I need to work on but other than that, I’m really grateful that I’m going to a place like this.”d