LOOKING TO THE FUTURE

Ex-St Giles patient strives onward with her ‘trash to cash’ business

Aformer patient of St Giles Psychiatric Hospital now only has one goal in life – to move on. Hagar Elenoa Holmes, runs a “trash to cash” business. But her life growing up wasn’t a bed of roses.

She was a victim of physical and sexual abuse from the age of 18. She was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2006, and has had eight admissions to the institution.

But these challenges only made her a stronger woman to venture into a jewellerymaking business. Her last admission to the mental health facility was last year. She was also released last year.

“In 2006 I was diagnosed with bipolar. I just had my first child, who is now 13 years old, and being a single mother wasn’t easy,” she said.

“My past relationship wasn’t a very good one, it was one of the contributing factors to my illness. I have had eight admissions already.

“Surviving it and coming out of it, I was heading toward this road where I wanted to achieve my goals, do well in life for the sake of my children.

“We survivors have that stigma and I don’t want my kids to have that stigma influence on them. I want people, when they see my children they see a successful mother, not a mother who was mentally challenged.” Ms Holmes said she was grateful for her family’s support.

“Nowadays a lot of young girls who have been sexually abused and who have gone through so much things in life that they never expected, they take a wrong turn. “For me, I had good family support throughout those times. I was going in and out of St Giles, there was a time when I was not myself.

“My healing took place at my sister’s house in Lami because my sister and my brotherin-law, Nicholas Fuata, took me in. He is a registered counsellor, he helped me through the Word of God. Through that I forgave those who had hurt me and when I started doing that, I was myself again.”

Ms Holmes, who is now a direct sales agent with Digicel, began with jewellery-making 12 years ago.

“I turn people’s trash into cash for me and I am grateful to have this as a way of getting extra income,” she said.

“All women are capable of doing things, even though they have gone through so much, there is still motivation in them.”