Today we’d like to introduce you to Leah Gonzales.
Leah, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born and raised in Louisiana where I was a single mom and learned many valuable lessons as I pressed past the financial struggles that come with being a single parent. Once I moved to Texas, I worked my way up the corporate ladder. My corporate experience encompassed sixteen years of office management in the oil and gas industry and aviation business. While working as an office manager, I learned the necessary skills to run every department in an office environment as well as the skills to recession-proof a small business. These skills proved to be very beneficial as I embarked on the next phase in my life. It was at that time that God called me to start pouring into young single moms and sharing some of the strategies that I learned along the way.
Thus, I left the corporate world to pursue a calling to open a transitional living home in Brazoria County to help young single moms and children transition from surviving to thriving. In order to be more equipped to help this sector of society, I pursued a bachelor’s degree in biblical counseling and graduated with Summa cum laude honors and received the Delta Epsilon Chi award for intellectual achievement, Christian character, and leadership ability. I self-published my first daily devotional book and won first place in the devotional category in Xulon’s 2013 Christian Choice Book Contest.
In 2014, I self-published my second daily devotional book. Additionally, I received a Woman’s of Excellence and Woman of the Year award from the American Business Women’s Association. At present, I continue to serve as an instrument to spread a little bit of heaven to God’s creation here on earth by painting a picture of His love with words through my devotionals as well as serving as a small component in God’s grand scheme as the director of Life Skills House where we feel called to take our pilot program across the US with the first one near Houston and plans to open a second location in the Dallas area.
Life Skills House is a 501(c)(3) non-profit Christian organization that is dedicated to addressing the issue of generational poverty. Our focus is on multicultural young single moms and pregnant women from economically challenged backgrounds. Statistics show that 80% of young single moms rely on government assistance to sustain their households. We are committed to helping these women transition from surviving to thriving and redirecting the life course of two generations at once. Through practical life skills courses, job search assistance, continuing education enrollment assistance, spiritual nurturing and our recently opened transitional living home, we strive to give a hand up to those who are at times seen as a liability in the community so that they not only become active, productive citizens but also become huge contributors in making our community a better place to reside.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I don’t speak of my accomplishments to draw attention to self but to segue into the idea that this is attainable by anyone. Everything that I have ever succeeded in was not due to a high IQ but due to a few principles, I held in high esteem. God has called me to work at everything as though I am working directly for Him, persevere until my current efforts match the blueprints He gave me at the onset of the journey and to always view hardship as a season, as opposed to a perpetual situation too difficult to overcome. A practical example of this can be traced back to my recent college experience. I knew this would be very taxing on my family but the calling from God was too strong to ignore. Even though I felt pressed on every side, as funds were so tight that most weeks, I had to work within a $25 grocery budget and the cost of books were nowhere in my budget, I knew that these issues could not be used as a crutch to achieve anything less than excellence. Thus, I sifted every penny spent through the hands of God and reserved the textbooks at the library, all the while believing that God would deliver them into my hands prior to the assignment’s due date. Throughout all these struggles that I endured, I was certain that it was a season of training to equip me to not only say that all things are possible through Christ who gives you strength but to walk alongside these young ladies who are struggling and show them how to use their setbacks as a means to catapult them to achieve nothing less than excellence. Presently, I stand in the doorway where I’ve recently implemented the housing blueprint that God gave me, all the while setting free and encouraging women and children to discover, nurture and implement their God-given spiritual gifts and natural talents, one family at a time.
Please tell us about Life Skills House.
In addition to providing life skills courses, job search assistance, transportation, mentorship and spiritual nurturing, Life Skills House provides housing for young single moms and kids. We serve as a home for young women who make a decision to keep their children but who otherwise would not have the means to provide the needed funds to run a household. Our mission is to keep the moms and children together as a family and to provide the needed skills in order for them to thrive long after they’ve exited our program.
Are there any apps, books, podcasts or other resources that you’ve benefited from using?
In addition to reading the Bible, I listen podcasts of several people, among those are TD Jakes, Paula White, Joel Olsteen and Francis Chan.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lifeskillshouse.org
- Phone: 832-647-3161
- Email: leah@lifeskillshouse.org
- Facebook: Life Skills House – LSH
Image Credit:
Kelley Sweet Photography
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