Northwest women use life’s work to help give other mothers a boost

Motherhood goes beyond being a mother — it encompasses the spirit of a nurturer, someone who helps enable others to reach their full potential. Some women have children of their own or adopt, some foster, and others help those left in unfortunate situations.

“Behind every successful woman, there’s a tribe of women,” said Heather Engle, director of WestCare’s Women & Children’s Campus, a nonprofit that includes services from substance abuse to homeless and runaway shelters, domestic violence, treatment and prevention and mental health programs. “It’s important that women stop critiquing and judging each other because women will make you amazing, or they can take you out. As a mom, you protect your child and will fight whatever is between you and your children. Same goes for us.”

North View takes a look at local women who celebrate motherhood by giving back to their community.

Loving through addiction

Engle does not shy away from telling the women at the campus, 5659 W. Duncan Drive, that she has been through hell and back. Although the main bulk of her job is to focus on budgeting, finances and community partnerships, the other part involves forming personal relationships with the clients.

“We all share that story of addiction,” Engle said. “Even at nine years sober, I still experience fear, and I share that with them. It’s important that they understand that I know where they’re coming from.”

At 38, Engle hit her “all-time low” after attempting suicide. Her life changed after she enrolled at WestCare on Jan. 1, 2007. She makes it her mission to help other women change their lives.

“We help women with any alcohol or chemical addiction that’s under the sun,” Engle said. “Here, they receive unconditional love like they’ve never known. They are free to be a mess here and free to recover without any judgment.”

WestCare also offers a place for homeless youths and domestic minor human trafficking victims.

“What we do here is we both run a fully functioning city,” Engle said. “We see the true reality of what life is at its most basic sense. It’s hard to get caught up with worldly B.S. when we’re dealing with the discovery of life every day.”

For the past three years, Engle has been working with Alyson Martinez, assistant director at the nonprofit. In a similar style to a marriage, Engle shares her experiences with clients, while Martinez makes it a priority to listen.

“The hardest part about this job is listening to not only what they have to say but allowing them to choose their path,” Martinez said. “You can give them advice and offer suggestions, but at the end of the day, they choose what they’re going to do. I’ve seen the disease of addiction become so strong that mothers walk away from their children. Seeing that happen just breaks your heart. My role is to support them in the most non-objective way possible.”

Despite witnessing the aftermath of addictions, both women agree that watching simple things, such as a mother feeding her baby or holding her child’s hand, makes their job worth it.

“We can’t control their life, and we don’t get to control the outcomes,” Engle said. “Sometimes you know they’re walking into hell, and there’s nothing that you can do but let them know they can come back. That’s the hardest part about this job — watching them make decisions they shouldn’t make and hoping that they can make it back. That’s what moms do. We push them when they’re ready to fly, and sometimes they crash, but they can always come home.”

Giving back

Summerlin resident Beli Andaluz may be the owner of the high-end Beli Andaluz Salon, formally known as Pico Madama, but she has never forgotten her Guatemalan roots and the poverty she faced growing up.

In order to give back to her community, Andaluz volunteers as board president of the Shade Tree shelter, based in North Las Vegas.

“It’s the complete opposite of the beauty queen hair salon,” Andaluz said. “It’s very hard to hear about the misfortune that so many people have. We have 364 beds at the shelter, and they are always full. There is a constant need for this type of work.”

As president of the board, Andaluz focuses on helping executive director Marlene Richter make budgeting and program decisions.

She also has donated her time and styling expertise to the women and children at the shelter by offering free haircuts.

“Being in this position is so rewarding,” Andaluz said. “It makes you realize that not everything is as shiny and new in Las Vegas as I thought. A lot of people want to help these women, but they don’t know how. My goal is to inform the public about the amazing work that the Shade Tree does for the community.”

Fostering love

Northwest-area resident Donna Gamble has a special place in her heart for children. Her passion is further perceived by the big smile she wears when she talks about each child that has entered her home.

“In the 10 years that I’ve fostered, I’ve had between 75 and 100 children stay at my home,” Gamble said. “A child just wakes up your home.”

It started when Gamble took in her two goddaughters after their mother died. The girls stayed with her for 2½ years until their aunt adopted them.

After finding herself in an empty house, Gamble decided to open her heart again. She became a licensed foster mother through the Clark County Department of Family Services.

Because she is licensed to foster three children, she typically receives sibling groups.

“You can imagine we have a very busy household,” she said. “I always try to engage them in fun activities. I treat them the same way I treat my own daughter. They all receive the same love and attention.”

Children have stayed with her between one day and 19 months, and while many of them come from places of physical and emotional abuse, Gamble is quick to point that they are all fighters.

“Parents think foster parents are the enemy, but we’re not,” Gamble said. “I don’t get into judging parents. That’s not my business. My focus is to make sure children feel safe and loved. My goal is always to reunite children with their parents. I just carry in my heart what the child’s future might be. That’s the greatest challenge for me.”

She takes children to doctor’s appointments, daycare and parental visitations. Perhaps the hardest part about fostering is explaining to children why their parents did not show up during a visitation, she said.

She is thankful her job working as the executive secretary for the director of economic and business development at North Las Vegas is flexible, and she isn’t alone in taking care of the children.

Her 6-year-old daughter Joy openly welcomes anyone who enters the home.

Gamble first met Joy a few days after she was born in March 2010. When Joy was 19 months old, Child Protective Services asked Gamble if she would be interested in adopting her.

“I became a mom at 49,” Gamble said. “I truly consider Joy a gift. She loves children, especially babies. She always makes sure that they feel comfortable in our home and shares her clothes and her toys. She’s mama’s little helper.”

Currently, Gamble is taking care of a 3-month-old boy and a 3-year-old girl.

She’s helped children through an array of emotions and problems. Some children are food hoarders, others act out at home and in public, and some suffer from severe anxiety.

“We don’t look like a traditional family, but that’s OK. A family is a household where children are healthy, happy and loved dearly,” Gamble said. “The best thing is giving a child hope that it’ll be OK — life will be OK.”

To reach North View reporter Sandy Lopez, email slopez@viewnews.com or call 702-383-4686. Find her on Twitter: @JournalismSandy.