52 Lives

#327 Kayla

Request: Donations / Gifts / Messages

This week, we’d like to help an 18 year old girl called Kayla, who is about to move into a flat after being homeless for more than a year.

Kayla’s parents split up when she was very young and they never lived in one place for very long. As Kayla got older, she started hanging around with some people who were not good influences. She struggled to follow rules, and it created a rift in the family. In the end, the relationship with her mum completely broke down and she asked her to leave when she was 16. Kayla has been sofa surfing and staying in temporary accommodation ever since.

She has been receiving some support from a homeless charity, who asked if we could help her. Her support worker said Kayla has matured a lot during the past year and made a lot of positive changes. She enrolled in college, is now part-way through her course, and wants to start her own business when she graduates.

She has also just managed to secure a council flat, which will be her first proper home in more than 2 years. But the flat is virtually empty and Kayla has nothing and no family support. 

Kayla is ready to begin her new life as an adult, and we are firm believers in second chances. We'd like to help give her the best possible start at a new life.

What We Need

1. Donations: We'll use your donation to buy some of the bigger items Kayla needs, as well as anything she needs for her college course. 

2. Gifts for her home: We've set up an Amazon wishlist with things for her home. To buy a gift from the wishlist, please click the link below. Your gift will be sent directly to Kayla (just tick 'this is a gift' and select 'gift registry address' at checkout).

3. New home cards / kind messages: We'd love to send Kayla some kind messages and new home cards. To send a message by email, just write it in the form below and we will pass it along (your contact details will not be shared), or you can post a card or message to: 52 Lives (Life # 327), PO Box 3154, Reading, RG1 9AT.

Buy a Gift

Donate Online

What We Did

Thanks to all of you, Kayla's flat is filled with furniture and feels more like a home (you might be able to spot something you bought in one of these photos)!

We're also paying for driving lessons, and sending some grocery gift cards to help her save some money as she gets settled in.

Kayla was very much on her on, so receiving this kind of help from people she doesn't even know has been so wonderful for her.

Thank you to all of our supporters for making it possible for us to do things like this!