MEET JOAN

Life hasn't always been easy for Joan. She was born with fetal alcohol syndrome resulting from an alcoholic parent. She had several medical problems because of this. Then when she was six months old and until the age of two, she was in an iron lung after being diagnosed with polio. Overall, she had a very difficult childhood.

Later while living in California, Joan had the opportunity to work on the Little House on the Prairie set. She also worked for Hollywood Crews as a transportation driver for 18 years transporting many crew members (including actors) to and from sets. She met many famous people during this in her life.

In 2012, Joan was diagnosed as a type 2 diabetic. She left California to move to Stephenville where two of her friends lived. On the way, she was diagnosed with COVID-19. She had no one to help take care of the animals she brought with her and no one to help her with her sickness so she returned to California to recover. After she had fully recovered, she started heading back to Texas.

When she got to Stephenville, she was employed with the Stephenville ISD Transportation Department. Approximately 7 months later, she started experiencing pain in her mouth, but couldn't afford to fix the problems. She shared her story with some coworkers who reached out on her behalf to Erath County United Way. Immediately things started to fall into place. It was discovered that Joan didn't have running water in her bathroom due to plumbing problems from the winter storm (which was 8 months ago). Joan said that she made do without water by using her kitchen sink or checking into a motel every once in a while.
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The ECUW jumped into action to help Joan. They worked with the doctor'a office to set up the procedure she needed as well as arranged for a plumber to come and fix her pipes. "I don't know what I would do without the help from ECUW. Lisa is a blessing."
Joan looks forward to feeling better and being able to look for additional job opportunities as well as spending time with friends in Stephenville.

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