One Last Chance
Dionne never expected to live past eighteen, but she did… At the age of 28, she found herself in jail once again and this time, pregnant. Dionne was finishing her sentence at a work-release program when she was told she should have an abortion or she would go back to prison and probably lose custody of her baby. Dionne chose not only to keep her baby, but insisted on finding an alternate solution for having and raising her baby outside of prison.
Dionne had a rough life, one many people could not even imagine. As a young child, her father and stepfather abused her. She joined gangs to escape the abuse at home and began her life of crime and using drugs. She spent her adolescence in and out of detention homes and was arrested 73 times as a juvenile for various crimes including robbery, theft, and forgery. “The only things I knew were lying, cheating, and stealing,” Dionne said.
Throughout her early adult years, Dionne was continually arrested for various crimes and served multiple jail terms. She faced the possibility of being labeled a “career criminal” and serving a 20-year sentence. This realization encouraged her to enter and complete a drug rehabilitation program and straighten up to avoid serving those 20 years. She was then able to finish her sentence in a work-release program where she found out she was pregnant. Dionne did not accept the “choices” given to her, and her counselor suggested she contact the Catholic Charities Hawai‘i Mary Jane Program.
Dionne asked the Mary Jane Program for help after learning the program provides residential, support, and educational services for women who are experiencing an unplanned pregnancy and have nowhere else to go. This was the first time either the Mary Jane Program or the prison system considered participating in a situation like Dionne's. Dionne persisted and was given one last chance, which allowed her to finish her sentence on house arrest at the Mary Jane Home through the duration of her pregnancy and keep her baby after giving birth. The pregnancy reinforced changes Dionne had made in her life and not only kept her off drugs, but gave her a reason to remain off drugs, permanently. “Committing crimes and using drugs are not an option,” Dionne explained. “It is not about staying out of jail; it's not worth losing my baby.”
The Mary Jane Program continued to support Dionne in her life changes and helped integrate her into the community. The program taught her budgeting and other life skills that most people take for granted but were new learning experiences for Dionne. The program also offered birthing and parenting classes. “I was overwhelmed by the generosity of the staff at the Mary Jane Program. No one had ever cared for me and helped me the way they did,” said Dionne. “The parenting classes prepared me for raising my baby and showed me the seriousness of having a baby,” continued Dionne.
Dionne gave birth to a little girl whom she named Joanna. Dionne and Joanna have since graduated from the Mary Jane Program and have an apartment of their own. Dionne has been released from house arrest and is attending classes at Honolulu Community College. She is already planning for little Joanna's future, hoping Joanna will attend Kamehameha Schools where she wants her to learn other languages and have a better life growing up than she did.
Dionne has truly evolved and has become a great inspiration with a wonderful heart and desire to help other women like her. “I have started a business plan,” Dionne explained, “to open a house, similar to the Mary Jane Home, for girls who are pregnant, in jail, and want to raise their babies.” She credits much of her success to the love and support she received at the Mary Jane Home. “I am thankful and grateful to the Mary Jane staff and want to do all I can to give back to them. If it were not for them, I would have lost my baby and I would not have the life I have now. I would probably be back on drugs and committing crimes. They were truly a life-saver.”