Alvina is grateful for a supportive family and loves spending time with her daughter and grandson.

Her husband died last year suddenly

Alvina and her husband met at work in 2009, where Alvina worked on turbo generators and Leon worked on motors in the same field. They fell in love, married, and moved to Needles to be closer to his parents who were aging and needed help.

The first four years of marriage were challenging. “He drank, and I even put him jail after he laid hands on me,” Alvina said. “He put hands on me again, and I asked him, ‘Are you going to do this again, or is this it?’ And that was it.

“He quit drinking. I helped him through AA meetings and getting better. We went to church on Wednesdays and Sundays and we volunteered at food banks. We got better. The last nine years, we did so good. We were inseparable. People would see us together all the time. They’d say, ‘Alvina is here, we know Leon is over here too.’ It was good.”

Alvina had a daughter from a previous marriage and Leon had children as well. They worked together well and enjoyed their lives. Alvina’s life was shattered in June 2024 when Leon died.

“We were sleeping,” she said. “We went to bed, and he didn’t wake up. I guess he had a heart attack. I was still holding his hand.

“When he passed, I was lost,” Alvina added. “His family didn’t care to help me. I was away from all of my family. I asked my daughter in Victorville if there was a place I could stay. She didn’t have room for me, but she found the Mission.”

When Alvina entered the program in July, it was a difficult transition. “I didn’t trust anyone,” she said. “I didn’t know what to expect. But the more I talked, the more things started coming out. I started going to church and reading the Bible. That keeps me going.

“And Amalia is the most helpful,” Alvina said, referring to the women’s program manager. “She talks to me a lot about the grief I’m experiencing. Getting to know the other ladies has been really good for me too—having those relationships. I help them, they help me. We can’t fix each other, but there are things we can help one another with.”

Alvina’s sister and grandmother have been very supportive. “My daughter picks me up sometimes on the weekends, and I have a grandson, so that helps me keep moving forward.”

Alvina is planning on getting back to work and saving money for a place to live, most likely back in her home state of New Mexico where most of her family lives. She’s had help from Mission staff in replacing her driver’s license and social security cards, as well as schooling certificates. Alvina hopes to graduate in early summer 2025.