Claudia Stephens Captivating BY PHILLIS HAND Young Claudia Imagine that you can hear the echo of success bouncing off of a garage door in the back of a house. That is one of the beauties of Claudia Stephen’s story. It brings forth the inspiration and hopes that Claudia has experienced. Claudia came from living in a garage to owning a home with a garage. Claudia says “I think in acronyms a lot. ‘I say that regardless of what we have been through, there is hope.’ Healing Overcoming and Purpose and Empowerment… there is HOPE.” Claudia is the youngest of seven children in her family. She relocated to Ohio from California 20plus years ago. Claudia came from a challenging childhood that included abuse among the traumas that she experienced. Counselors would ask her how she got herself out of bad situations and her answer is that she just wanted to be loved and that is the mindset that helped free her. Claudia was young and married the guy that showed her attention and she thought loved her. She accepted living in sub par conditions for many years. Claudia never had her own address for twelve years while she was on her journey. As a national advocate, she learned that if you do not have an address, you are considered homeless. That was a really big pill to swallow when she realized that she and her family technically were homeless. “ I say that regardless of what we have been through, there is hope. ” ENVISIONPROVENSUCCESS.COM | 17 Claudia was born a citizen of the United States and her family was born in Mexico. She always knew that she was able to endure hardships because of the God in her. Her ex-husband had a best friend here in Ohio and that is why they moved here. Her ex-husband got them an apartment and she told him that if he acts out, she was going to leave him. It wasn’t just him holding her down; it was that mindset and the culture and the people around her. Because of her culture and unspoken family values, the psychological manipulation that she grew up with and endured was ingrained in her behaviors and influenced the choices that she made when she was going through dark times. Claudia stated, “I started to believe that I had the problem of wanting things to change. I was made to feel that you should support your husband and be that submissive wife. You stick by him.” But when her mindset changed, “I became like ‘She-Ra’ the warrior” she says. “Like with the lady at the well, God has traveled miles and miles to meet her, because I am worthy.” A year passed after she left her exhusband and she started to get promoted at her job, and started to get better opportunities and became a supervisor. She had a friend here who helped and inspired her. “God just placed me with the right people to be able to do this,” she says. She remembers a moment, when she was at a low point, when a woman told her, “With that smile, there has to be more to you.” It helped her to understand that the abuse she had endured throughout her life was not normal.
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