Diane plays a critical role at My Cup of Tea. Besides interviewing applicants, she teaches the employment curriculum.

“When they come in broken, I share that I’ve been broken too.”

Diane wanted to be a nurse, but she married young and grappled with a drug addiction. After fighting through recovery and leaning on God to get her through, she shares her story with other women facing similar challenges.

“I’ve learned to blossom, embrace life, and trust in God,” she says. “I used to never like to smile, and now I smile all the time.”

Diane left My Cup of Tea for over two years to take care of two brothers battling serious health conditions. She recently returned and was welcomed back with open arms.

"The main reason I stay at My Cup of Tea is because I love the sisterhood – encouraging one another, helping one another. I can’t think of a better place than My Cup of Tea to do that.”

Since childhood, Doris has loved to cook.

 “My mom wouldn’t let me in the kitchen,” Doris laughs. “So, my auntie taught me to cook in her kitchen.”

Doris’ mom and auntie both died at the age of 43 from cancer, something she feared as a young adult. Now a mother and grandmother, Doris has faced many other trials throughout her life.

Before My Cup of Tea, Doris worked at a hotel where she was held hostage one evening. The experience was so traumatizing, she quit her job and didn’t work again until she found My Cup of Tea.

Asked what her life was like before, Doris says it was “terrorizing.” Since coming to My Cup of Tea, Doris says she is more confident, stronger, and more able to express her feelings and needs.

Doris still loves to cook for family, her My Cup of Tea sisters, and she dreams of owning a restaurant in Orange Mound someday.

“I used to get high right here on this porch,” Cool says, referring to the house that is now My Cup of Tea.

A product of Melrose High in Orange Mound, Cool dreamed of playing basketball beyond high school, but a knee injury shattered that dream. After high school, Cool gave birth to a daughter while in prison. After her release, she spent much of her time getting high.

When her daughter was 4 years old, L. Cool made the gut-wrenching decision to give up custody of her daughter and enter rehab. After three tries, L. Cool earned her sobriety on November 1^st, 1996.

L. Cool eventually reunited with her daughter, who introduced her to My Cup of Tea. Now L. Cool says life is less stressful. She stopped smoking and feels like she's part of something important.

Cool is the groundskeeper, maintenance staff, and an entrepreneur. She refurbishes furniture on the side.

And that daughter born while Cool was in jail? She is now a Memphis police officer.

"My Cup of Tea is part of the plan God has for my life," says Danyelle.

A native of Detroit, Danyelle was unable to attend her college classes because of a difficult, unexpected pregnancy. She was a first-time mother with no employable skills and no transportation.

Danyelle moved to Memphis to be near her father, who relocated to enroll in a reentry program. She left behind all she owned and moved her infant twins. Fortunately, it wasn't long until a Neighborhood Christian Center-led afterschool program helped connect her to My Cup of Tea.

Since coming to My Cup of Tea, Danyelle has paid cash for two cars, the second better than the first, and she is debt-free. Jasmine, one of Danyelle's five children, joined her at My Cup of Tea after graduation from high school. Now, mother and daughter work side-by-side, pray, and study God's word together.