Q3: Sometimes, the greatest impact of the Dream Center is found in the moments we don’t always get to see.
For Mariel Ramses, the Dream Center has been part of her family’s story through some of the hardest seasons of their lives.
What began years ago with a need for affordable health care for her father became something much bigger: a relationship with people who have continued to walk alongside her family, listen to them, pray for them and help them find a way forward when life felt overwhelming.
Mariel’s family first encountered the Dream Center when her father was diagnosed with diabetes. The cost of appointments, medication and treatment quickly became overwhelming, and he became one of the earliest patients at Trinity Health Center.
As his condition became more serious, her father was at risk of losing his leg. Through Trinity, the family was connected with a specialist in Arkansas who was willing to provide charitable care. Trinity helped them navigate their options and connect with the care he needed.
Her father’s leg was saved.
But for Mariel, that was only the beginning of what the Dream Center would come to mean to her family.
Over the years, other members of her family began receiving care at Trinity. As they returned for appointments, Mariel developed relationships with the nurse practitioners who cared for her family, including Mrs. Tina and Mrs. Pam.
Those relationships became especially important when her 9-year-old son, Ramsey, began struggling at school.
Mariel knew something was wrong. She had tried to get help through the school, but she felt like she wasn't getting the answers or support Ramsey needed. She didn't know what was causing him to struggle. She just knew that something was off.
As she continued bringing her family to Trinity, the nurse practitioners noticed the stress she was carrying. They asked how she was doing, listened as she talked about what was happening at home and with Ramsey, and began asking questions of their own.
They told Mariel about the Dream Center’s DREAM Learners program and encouraged her to explore additional resources in the community.
That conversation became an important turning point for her family.
Ramsey was eventually diagnosed with dyslexia and anxiety. Having answers helped Mariel better understand what her son was experiencing and gave their family a clearer path toward finding the support he needed.
Then, this year, Mariel’s family entered another difficult season.
Her husband had spent time away from DeSoto County because of a difficult family situation. When he returned home, he came back not only to Mariel and their family, but also with his sister and young nephew. Their household had suddenly grown, and her husband was without work.
Mariel was trying to help her family find its footing again while facing more needs than they had the resources to meet.
So she came to the Dream Center’s Emergency Needs Closet.
There, her family received food to help them through their first week home, along with clothing and baby essentials for her nephew. It was practical help at a time when Mariel needed it. But the support did not stop there. The support coordinator connected the family with additional community resources to help them continue working toward stability and getting back on their feet.
For Mariel, what mattered just as much as what her family received was how they were treated.
They were known. They were remembered. They were prayed for. They were loved.
As Mariel reflected on everything her family had experienced, she became emotional. She talked about Mrs. Tina and Mrs. Pam and the role they have played in her family’s life, not only as health care providers, but as people who listened, encouraged them and continued to show up when her family needed support.
“They really have saved us,” Mariel shared.
Not just because her father’s leg was saved. Not just because her son found support. Not just because her family received food, clothing and baby essentials when they needed them. But because, through every difficult season, Trinity Health Center and the Dream Center were there.
Mariel talked about the comfort of knowing she could walk into the Dream Center and talk with someone when life felt overwhelming. She talked about the people who prayed for her family during their most uncertain seasons.
Then she shared something that captured what that relationship has meant to her family.
When her husband returned home, he was surprised to learn that people at the Dream Center had been praying for him.
He couldn't understand why people who barely knew him would care enough to pray for him.
Mariel explained that they knew him because they knew her. They knew his son. They knew her parents. They knew their family.
They cared about him.
“You are loved,” she told him.
For Mariel, that is what the Dream Center has become for her family: a place where they are known and cared for, not simply a place they go when they need something.
That is what a community of care can do.
It can meet a physical need while reminding someone they are not alone. It can connect a child to the support they need to learn and grow. It can provide health care when the cost feels impossible. It can put food on a table during an uncertain season. It can listen when someone needs to talk. It can pray when there are no easy answers.
And sometimes, it can become family.
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