February 11, 2009

A long road in a short life

By Peg Glover

Oil worker, U.S. Marine Corps reservist, married man, Iraqi war veteran, divorced father, homeless single father and a U.S. Postal worker all define the different phases of Nick Bowman’s life. And he is just 24.

Born in Thornton, Colo., and raised by a divorced mom, 5-year-old Nick and his mother relocated to Denver City in West Texas when his mom remarried.

Barely out of high school, Nick went to work in the oil fields of Denver City. He married his high school sweetheart and had a baby boy, Xavier. Nick remembers those long days in the oil fields.

“It was tough work,” he said. “I decided that I didn’t want to spend the rest of my life working in the oil fields so I joined the United States Marine Corps Reserve.”

Nick believes that the Marine Reserves was the best thing that ever happened to him.

“It instilled a lot of respect and responsibility within me,” he said. “It gave me a renewed commitment to my family. I then moved my family to Denver.”

When Xavier was 2, Nick and his wife had Jeremiah. The joy of Jeremiah’s birth was dimmed by a congenital heart defect known as Tetralogy of Fallot. This rare heart defect changes the normal flow of blood through the heart.

“Jeremiah had three holes in his heart,” explained Nick. “It was very serious. It required open-heart surgery.”

Jeremiah’s prognosis is good but he will require lifelong medical care.

In January 2006, Nick was deployed to Ramadi, Iraq. He worked in convoy security where his unit endured sporadic shelling and sniper fire.

“I was ‘in country’ for seven months,” Nick said. “It is an experience I’ll never forget. There were casualties everyday. But, the camaraderie there was incredible. We did our job and made the best of it.”

When he returned to Denver he knew that his marriage was troubled but was surprised to discover that his wife had moved his family back to Texas while he was in Iraq.

 Nick spent the next year in legal battles over the custody of their children. He was awarded full custody of his boys in July 2007. He was thrilled to have his boys and moved in with his sister and brother-in-law. That didn’t work out. Suddenly, he was a homeless single father. Then a friend referred him to Catholic Charities’ Transitional Housing program.

Kitty Smith, Nick’s case worker, helped him find an apartment and assistance with rent. “Kitty was awesome,” Nick said. “I was new to being a single father and she helped me so much!”

Catholic Charities’ Transitional Housing program provides formerly homeless families and individuals safe and stable housing. With a success rate of better than 85 percent, the program actually reduces much of the financial burden on other social service costs for the government and the community as a whole over the long run.

“For the children in particular,” noted Kitty, “having a stable home-life helps them succeed in school and restores their sense of self-esteem. For parents and single people, having a stable living environment also helps them build a better credit report and an increase in the likelihood that they will never be on the streets again. They also all benefit from knowing that their case manager will always be there for emotional support.”

Through case management, new residents are guided through the maze of services available to them.

Catholic Charities Transitional Housing program provided furniture, household items, school clothing for the children and classes for Nick in budgeting and nutrition so that his boys ate well. They also made sure the boys had a good Christmas for the last two years.

In the year and a half since Nick turned to Catholic Charities he has found solid employment with the U.S. Postal Service. He has saved enough money for a down payment on a home and with a VA loan will close on a home soon.

It still isn’t easy. Nick works nights. His sister watches the boys (now 3 and 5) overnight.

“This schedule is rough on the kids,” Nick said, “but I know that our quality of life will get better. I hope I can show them the right path to being good men. I want them to be responsible and successful in God’s eyes.

“I couldn’t have done it without Catholic Charities and the people in Transitional Housing,” he said.