Kalee’s breath caught when she saw it.

Her son, Greyson’s, teddy bear sat beside her on the couch.

First, she smiled. Then the painful reminder set in.

Greyson wasn’t holding the teddy bear. DCYF had taken him away.

“I remember breaking down on the floor, crying my eyes out,” Kalee recalls. “I felt so stuck. That was not the way I wanted to be living.”

As tears blurred the teddy bear in front of her, Kalee realized she had one chance to give Greyson the stable childhood she never had. And she would do everything in her power to make that happen.

Thanks to New Generation, she’s now building a brighter future for both herself and her son.

The Curse Takes Shape

Growing up, Kalee often lay awake at night wishing things were different.

The sounds of her parents arguing echoed through the house. The smell of alcohol filled the air.

Then came the divorce that split her family apart. Kalee spent years bouncing from place to place.

Eventually, the pain caught up with her. She started drinking, then using drugs. A DUI led to six months in jail. When she got out, she was homeless, sleeping in a cramped car she could no longer legally drive.

Looking for a fresh start, she moved to New Hampshire to be closer to family.

For a while, things improved. She met Greyson’s father, became a stay-at-home mom, and life felt stable.

But old habits returned. Her boyfriend relapsed. Kalee followed. The fighting escalated. Then came abuse.

Eventually, her boyfriend was arrested. And after Kalee failed two drug tests, DCYF removed Greyson from the home.

As Kalee sat there, she couldn’t ignore the truth any longer.

The addiction. The instability. The chaos. It was the same life she had grown up in.

“I had that epiphany,” she shared. “I was repeating the same generational curse that’s been going on for two generations now.”

But she was determined it would end with her. She refused to let Greyson grow up carrying the same pain she had known as a child.

And with that, she moved out – away from the abuse, away from the turmoil, and away from an environment that looked far too much like the one she had spent years trying to escape.

A New Start

Kalee checked into treatment, where she spent four months rebuilding her life. After completing an intensive outpatient program, she was reunited with Greyson.

“In rehab, you learn about healthy boundaries,” she shares. “It was time for me to start practicing them.”

That’s when she heard about New Generation.

After being placed on the waiting list, Kalee called almost every day, hoping for an opening. Then came the call she had been waiting for.

From the moment she walked through the door, things began to change for the better.

“The staff here were so caring and empathetic about my situation,” she recalls. “They made me feel a hundred times better about myself.”

Through parenting classes, support groups and one-on-one guidance, Kalee began rebuilding not only her confidence, but also the skills she needed to create a stable home for Greyson. Accountability is also a big part of her growth.

“They want to see us succeed,” she says. “They’re giving us skills we can take with us. I always ask myself, ‘How would I handle this if I was on my own?'”

Building a Strong Future

For years, she dreamed of earning her high school equivalency diploma. But between raising a newborn and struggling with substance use, that goal felt out of reach.

New Generation helped her enroll in classes and even provided transportation twice a week. Recently, Kalee passed the HiSET exam – a milestone she once thought was impossible.

She also won an essay contest and received a scholarship to continue her education. She’s working toward a career in healthcare and hopes to enroll in a phlebotomy program.

The DCYF case recently closed, and Kalee and Greyson have been reunited.

“DCYF shared how I was doing great maintaining my sobriety and working on other areas,” she says. “It was the best feeling to give him a hug.”

Now it’s the little moments she treasures most.

“My favorite part of the day is waking up with him next to me,” she shares with a smile. “I roll over and say, ‘Good morning,’ and he pulls the covers over his face and smiles. He’s so cuddly.”

Kalee draws inspiration from New Generation staff, especially since several have walked through the same shoes she was in.

This includes her caseworker, Spenser, who has been with her every step of the way.

“With other shelters, you feel like you’re living in a business,” she adds. “I never get that vibe at New Generation. Staff have been through the same situations as you have. That makes you feel more comfortable and understood.”

A Second Chance

Today, she has been sober for more than a year and recently started a job at a local restaurant.

Kalee believes Greyson’s future will look very different from her own childhood.

“I’m not the same mom that I was before,” she shares. “I’m more mature and patient. I’ve learned valuable life skills that will carry me forward. For the first time in my life, I can look forward to something I’ve never really had – stability.”

More importantly, she knows Greyson now has a different future ahead of him.

“I stay up at night just thinking of all the possibilities because he has a whole life ahead of him,” she shares. “He can do whatever he dreams of. If he wants to play soccer, he could play soccer. If he wants to do hockey, he can do hockey.”

“I’ll be able to support my son and become independent. That’s what matters most. Thanks to donors, I don’t have to live in toxicity anymore.”

Her message to donors is simple.

“I’ve got my son back. I’ve got a job. I’m building a career. And we have a future to look forward to – thanks to you. This is the stepping stone that put us on the right path.”

Thanks to you, Kalee no longer looks at Greyson’s teddy bear through tears.

Now, Greyson is right beside her, curled up with the teddy bear he loves so much.