Changed Life, Changed Heart: My Journey from Grad School to The WellHouse

By Haley Hawkins, Intern

My Original Life Plan

My name is Haley Hawkins, and I’m interning at The WellHouse.

Since the spring of 2017, I knew I wanted to be a marriage and family therapist. In the second semester of my junior year of high school, it was time for me to select a topic for the capstone of my primary education - my senior thesis. And as a means of commemorating the ten years of broken marriages and blended families I personally experienced, I chose to write about the negative impact of divorce on children. 

Completing the research for this project piqued my interest in becoming a human scientist. In the fall of 2018, I officially declared my major as Human Development and Family Studies. This degree is known for its versatility, opening a wide range of career paths for its recipients. But, from day one, I had a single goal in mind - marriage and family therapy. I did everything in my power to realize this dream. I declared the family life education concentration, completed research under a professor who is also a licensed MFT, started a club dedicated to building a community of women in my major, and finally, completed a practicum at the on-campus marriage and family therapy clinic, where I had the opportunity to watch therapy sessions live. 

Before I knew it, graduate school application season was upon me. I blazed forward, writing personal statements, refining my resume, and completing multiple interviews for marriage and family masters programs in the southeast. After a year of hard work, I was accepted, and I proceeded to enroll in a graduate program matriculating in the fall semester of 2021. 

Becoming Aware of Trafficking

So, where does the WellHouse fit into this? 

Well, it all started on July 30th, 2020, World Day Against Trafficking. 

It was on this day that I found myself completely and totally wrecked.

My story is like many others who find themselves in this ministry. For a long time, trafficking seemed distant. I knew it existed, but it only happened in Africa, right? Wrong. So, so wrong. 

All of this came to my attention at once. I was consumed by the reality of trafficking. I tore through articles and documentaries, pausing intermittently to weep or pray or call a friend and make sure they too were aware of the evil in our world and brief them on precisely what we needed to do about it. 

I remember looking my best friend and roommate square in the face and saying “I have to find a way to rescue these women and children. Like, physically pull them from danger and whisk them to safety. I’m moving to Indonesia (the location of the youtube documentary I’d just watched).” She applauded my passion, but met me with a much-needed dose of reality that allowed the pandemic-sized problem to feel smaller and more manageable for a 20 year old college student. 

“Start small,” she said. “Look for local organizations you can donate to, volunteer for, or even intern with.” I took her advice, perhaps to an extreme she hadn’t intended to imply, and googled “anti-trafficking charity Birmingham.” I emailed the first one I found. 

Journey to The WellHouse

Thankfully, this was The WellHouse. Within the hour, I had composed and sent an admittedly unprofessional email basically saying “Hi, please hire me, but I can’t come until 10 months from now.” I then purchased items from their retail program ShopWell, called my dad and requested they be added to our family charity list, and resolved to sell all the clothing I’d just purged from my closet on instagram and donate all the money to them. 

I am pleased to report that, by the grace of God, all of that happened, including the internship. Which is how I am writing to you from The WellHouse blog today. 

The WellHouse is a powerful place. After ten months of anticipation, I drove up on my first day, delighted to find a serene hideaway for the women seeking refuge, recovery and restoration. 

The gravity of the situation hit me instantly - “these women are real, what they’ve been through is real, and they’re right here finding rest. And, by the grace of God, I get to play a small part in that process.” 

The reality of trafficking had become less distant the day I found out about the WellHouse. But, the day I arrived here for the first time, that reality consumed me. And while I am beyond thankful for the women who are here, I could not help but think of how many more daughters of the King are out there, needing nothing more than to call a place like The WellHouse home. 

A Passion Ignited

Throughout that first day, my passion was ignited for these women, this ministry, and this cause. The care, passion, and drive of each woman on staff is evident, and I was (and still am) honored to walk alongside them, even for just ten weeks. 

The conversations I had throughout my first few days were inspiring and enlightening to me. I learned of the backgrounds of each woman on staff who now spends her days fighting for the women who need us most, as most had not intended to end up in ministry. However, the Lord has a way of guiding the hearts of the willing and able to the places He can best use them and their talents to accomplish His will. And, this exact phenomenon began to occur in me. 

Three days into my internship, I called my dad in tears saying I had to pull out of graduate school and pursue this ministry. I told him about how I realized that once you begin this kind of work, you cannot just turn your back and walk away. How once you are informed of the evils in this world -- the evils that have affected these women’s lives -- you are left with no choice but to fight for them, and the many, many more like them. And so, I rescinded my enrollment in graduate school and applied to stay full-time at the WellHouse.

Letting Him Lead

I write all of this to you to share the power of this ministry, and to encourage you to listen closely to the whispers of the Holy Spirit. Your plans will change. You will likely be uncomfortable. But, I assure you, you will be led exactly where you need to go.