Sheila Reagor

Ms. Sheila Reagor was born 42 years ago in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the youngest child and only daughter in a family of six. Her family moved to Los Angeles when she was ten years old. Her mother passed away when she was 16. In high school she had her first child, Calvin Lewis, got married after graduation and four years later, had her second son, Wendell Jason.

When Sheila was 25 years old her father became ill. This was when her problems with drugs and alcohol began. Through her struggle with substance abuse, Sheila remained devoted to her sick father, visiting and caring for him every day at the hospital. Before he died, Sheila's father told her, "I want you to straighten your life out. Be the daughter your mother and I raised you to be. Be somebody." It was then that Sheila decided to get clean and sober, but the road to recovery would not be easy.

Sheila found herself caught in the cycle of addiction, in and out of various substance abuse programs over the years. A few years ago, she found herself back in the snares of her cocaine addiction, but this time it took her lower than she had ever been. She was nine months pregnant and homeless.

After the birth of her daughter, Sheila was determined to turn her life around. She enrolled in a substance abuse program, went six months clean and sober and was admitted to the Weingart Center's SuperTrack Program. During this time, Sheila believes that, "God never took his hands off me."

The Weingart Center has opened up numerous doors and provided opportunities for Sheila that had been previously out of reach. As Sheila says, "Life has been great since I made a decision in my life and in my mind." She has been able to continue her education, completing several classes at the Weingart's Thomas and Dorothy Leavey Learning and Employment Center. She received training to be an HIV/AIDS peer educator and is now doing outreach and referrals throughout the Skid Row area on her free time.

Sheila was one of five women from the Weingart's SuperTrack program selected to participate in a special with E! Network. The ladies were filmed as they went about their daily activities and were given a full makeover in Beverly Hills. Sheila's makeover even included extensive dental work so she could, "Smile at the world."

The Weingart Center is enabling Sheila to rebuild her life. She has a job waiting for her at the AIDS Health Care Foundation and she hopes to be in permanent housing by January. Through her dedication and hard work, Sheila will be reunited with her baby daughter in November. We have no doubt that Sheila will reach her goals of a "normal family life - work, home and kids." As she says, "I have been through it, and I'm not going to give up."