Self-Development People funded S.M.I.L.E. (Single Mothers in a Learning Environment) in 1989 to assist in their effort to collectively lobby for increased minimum wages and in purchasing a van to provide transportation to training opportunities and jobs with better salaries.

S.M.I.L.E. (Single Mothers in a Learning Environment)

By Melanie Curry

(L to R) Cherlette Collier, Rosemary Collier, Cheryl Hagins. Photo courtesy of Rosemary Collier.

As a young woman, Rosemary found herself faced with the challenge of trying to make a better life for herself amidst the strongholds of past disparities.  Mirrored in her life was the scarring impact of years of childhood abuse and the beckoning call of alcoholism demons that had plagued her family for generations. She dropped out of high school and married young, seeking to find freedom and refuge from her troubled past. When her husband left her and their two teenage daughters, Rosemary had no employable skills and no high school diploma or GED. She was forced to find her first job in a local flower nursery. The long, low-paying hours spent working in the heat among bugs and snakes helped her to quickly see that she needed to make some changes in her life if she was ever going to provide a better life for her family.

A friend of Rosemary’s introduced her to the Justice and Peace Office’s S.M.I. L. E. (Single Mothers In a Learning Environment) program . It was in this group of 25 women that Rosemary says, “I got my dignity back!”  She desired to take the GED exam but did not have the $25 for the application fee. The Justice and Peace Office covered this fee for Rosemary and supported her first step toward her new life. Rosemary’s daughters took part in helping her to prepare for the test and encouraged her after two unsuccessful tries until she passed on the third attempt.

Since that time, Rosemary obtained a certificate to become an Insurance Benefits Consultant and then went on to receive her Insurance License with the state of Florida.  In addition to continuing in this career path, Rosemary is waiting for the release of her book, Bonding Time, which will help parents to learn the importance of spending time with their children and inspiring them to greatness.  She takes great pride in her daughters who have both gone on to pursue trade and college level degrees and her granddaughter, who is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree.

As a result of her participation in S.M.I.L.E. and in her relationship with Jesus Christ, Rosemary says that she was able to lay a strong foundation for her daughters, which attributed to their success. Looking back on her experience with JPO, Rosemary says that the program gave her self-esteem.  Of our founder and executive director, Rosemary says, “Sister Teresa loved the abused little girl out of me and helped me to become a young lady.” In addition to pursuing a career path that she adores, Rosemary voluntarily speaks to incarcerated women and continues to pass on the lessons that she has learned in life and through S.M.I.L.E.  She looks for opportunities to encourage young women to continue their education and to work toward their dreams.