Give Me a Chance Inc. celebrates new building

Intermountain Catholic

+ Enlarge

Bishop Wester will bless the new Give Me a Chance headquarters in Ogden on Sept. 6. Courtesy photo/ Rachael Sutherland

By Rachael Sutherland

OGDEN — The lobby of the dark brown building is teeming with children of all ages, from 5-year-olds to young adults. The building is the new headquarters of the Ogden charity Give Me a Chance Inc., and provides a safe and air-conditioned place for children to stay while their mothers take advantage of the non-profit’s services.

Headed by Daughter of Charity Sister Maria Nguyen, Give Me a Chance’s primary goal is to help impoverished immigrant women gain marketable skills, such as sewing, embroidery and computer expertise.

As a Daughter of Charity, Sr. Maria’s mission is to aid the monetarily and spiritually poor. She created Give Me a Chance to give low-income women, who often face severe poverty, a chance to learn basic skills and earn money to support their families.

Sr. Maria understands the challenges immigrants face. Twenty years ago, she emigrated from her native Vietnam to the United States and initially worked with Catholic Community Services.

"I wanted to see what people need here, so I volunteered at the food bank," she said. "I saw many women waiting for food, and a lot of them Spanish speaking, and so many of them not able to eat enough."

Sr. Maria’s experience inspired her to help these women earn money to buy enough food for their families.

"That idea, instead of just coming here [CCS] to wait, how about they do something for themselves? … So that was the very beginning of my thought, to help people become self sufficient," she said.

In April 2010, Sr. Maria founded Give Me a Chance with the mission of "Enabling individuals to be self-sufficient" and the goal to empower low-income women. The facility offers classes in sewing, embroidery and alterations, and serves over 100 women. "They can sew clothes for their children, learn [to do alterations] and earn some money," Sr. Maria said.

Give Me a Chance is a unique Daughters of Charity ministry, and facilitates a nearby boutique, which offers formal wear and alterations. The DeMarillac boutique is run entirely by the women from Give Me a Chance.

Sr. Maria takes pride in the store, saying, "We focus on helping people to learn skills so they can support themselves. We try to create business opportunities for the clients we serve. That’s where the boutique came from. We want to give the women a chance to work, and they work there as managers, sales associates and in alterations."

Sr. Maria’s endeavor faces numerous challenges, and not just financial limitations. Many women who come to Give Me a Chance lack the necessary papers to acquire employment and experience language barriers. They also often have little work experience and have trouble securing sufficient transportation and child care.

"I feel like there are difficult problems and I don’t have a solution," said Sr. Maria with a smile. "We keep thinking out of the box to see if we can find a way to help these women. God hasn’t shown me the way yet, but we try to do the best we can."

Nevertheless, she finds comfort in the hopeful stories of the women she has helped. One woman, who has been with Give Me a Chance from the beginning, took the sewing classes and is now the head seamstress of alterations at DeMarillac boutique.

"What [the woman] learned from us is not only sewing skills," Sr. Maria said. "She learned self-esteem, and gained confidence. Now she feels like she can go do something. She wants us to help other women the same way we helped her."

Many of the women come from various parts of the world, and Give Me a Chance gives them the opportunity to build friendships and find social support.

"And they are very grateful for that," Sr. Maria said. "I find that part very, very nice."

Give Me a Chance continues to aid the community, despite adversity. The new facility offers tutoring to students in math and reading, and plans to start an after-school program in the fall. In the future, Give Me a Chance hopes to mentor women as they start businesses of their own.

"They all work together – they all have the same voice," Sr. Maria said. "They share the responsibility. They’re all equal."

Rachael Sutherland is a senior at Saint Joseph Catholic High School.

WHAT: Blessing of the Give Me a Chance headquarters

WHERE: 2913 Grant Ave. in Ogden

WHEN: 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6

The Most Rev. John C. Wester, Bishop of Salt Lake City, will bless the new building. Along with a ribbon cutting ceremony, there will be dinner, entertainment, and live and silent auctions to raise funds to expand services and sustain programs.

For information about the dedication celebration or Give Me a Chance Inc., contact Program Director Heidi Portz at 801-791-5667 or hportz@weber.edu.