March 10, 2003, 12 year old Amy Svitak, her mother and 2 brothers showed up at the Mission’s Women and Family Shelter. Behind on her rent and with no family to turn to, Amy’s mom was desperate. The Svitak family found a place at the Mission and started getting the care and help they needed. A year after moving into the Women and Family Shelter, Amy was given the opportunity to share her story about homelessness with KOMO 4 viewers. For several weeks, she videotaped homeless families living at our Women and Family Shelter and homeless men living on the streets. Her story touched the hearts of thousands of people. On May 9th, KOMO 4 News reporter John Sharify announced to her on-air that she was nominated for two regional Emmy awards. She and her mom were awe struck. June 19th, Amy sat in the second row of the Bagley Wright Theatre anticipating the “news feature” category, one of the two categories she had been nominated. Finally the category was announced. The room was silent. Amy and her mom held hands. “And the winner is…,” then a clip of Amy’s feature appeared. There were screams and applause! She had won! Her mom’s eyes teared up as Amy headed to the podium to accept her award with John Sharify. In her acceptance speech, she thanked God, Seattle’s Union Gospel Mission, John Sharify and KOMO 4 for giving her the chance to tell her story. Amy is the youngest person to ever receive an Emmy award in this region. Amy, her mother ReNae and two brothers are current residents at the Mission’s Son Rise House, a transitional housing facility for women and children. As a result of generous support from those in the community, Amy and her family have a second chance. If you would like to give people like Amy and her family a second chance, click here