Cassie's Story

“I was determined not to enjoy my life here. That all changed when I met my houseparents,” Cassie confesses. Angry and confused when she arrived on campus, she enjoys life today as a confident and happy young lady.

She grew up with abusive, alcoholic parents. As a little girl Cassie cringed in fear when the kitchen door slammed every afternoon, because that meant her dad was home and the abuse was about to begin. A few years later when he walked away from the family, she thought life would get better.

Instead, it became worse. How? As a single parent, her mother now focused all her anger on Cassie. Increasing verbal and physical abuse fueled Cassie’s anger and belief that God did not exist. “I knew if God were real, I mean really real, He wouldn’t let my mother hurt me. He would stop her,” Cassie reflects.

After a teacher noticed a bruise peeking out a blouse sleeve, state social workers gave Cassie's mother a choice … stop the abuse, send Cassie to relatives or the state will take her away.

The fires of her anger were fueled by several failed attempts to survive state foster care, they ignited while living with her grandfather and raged after a brief return home. That's when her case worker suggested Cassie live at Mount Dora Children’s Home.

At first, it was hard to live with the rules in her house. Equally as difficult for Cassie was accepting as genuine the attention and care her houseparents gave her. “I didn’t trust any adult and kept waiting for the ‘catch.’ They just kept loving me, no matter what I did,” Cassie remembers.

That consistency was the key to giving Cassie the courage to change her life. “I finally admitted to myself they were for real. That’s when everything else fell into place for me,” she states. It wasn’t long before her grades improved, she adopted a healthier attitude, studied the Bible and became a Christian.

“When I look back at what I went through and I what I enjoy now, I know God loves me,” Cassie explains. “I trust God to lead my life and I look forward to what He has in store for me. My life is better because of my time at Mount Dora.”

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