7 Questions With
Marqueena
Harris
How long have you been opening your home to adults with developmental disabilities or living with someone with a developmental disability?
About 12 years.
What advice do you wish you received when you first started providing services?
That it would be challenging at times. Never take anything personal because in this field you experience a lot of different personalities and trauma.
What is the hardest part about the work you do?
Haha…it’s really the mental part. Everything else is easy. You really have to take care of yourself. What I realize is that you get thrown into this field with little information. You have to be mentally prepared to perform to the best of your ability. You have to want to do your job because this is a hard field mental wise.
What is the best part about the work you do?
I feel like I can be their hero, taking care of them, me allowing them to be themselves, expressing themselves the way they feel without taking it personal. Changing someone’s life enough to where they’re stable and they see the change.
What is a dream that you have for yourself?
One day my dream is to get into real estate and maybe down the line like 10-12 years down the line, something in the mental health field. Providing shelter for the homeless or alcohol addiction.
What is the dream you have for the person(s) you are supporting?
To hopefully be able to live on their own and be independent. We’re working on laundry skills and diabetic maintenance. I think Man could be on his own with assistance in the near future.
Who do you consider a hero and why?
I don’t think I have a hero. I have always been others hero and think to myself, strong people need assistance too. I think my hero could’ve been my dad. I learned a lot from him, he taught me a lot. He guided me a lot but he passed. He was always big on stocks and showed me how to invest. The quote that always stuck with me was… “You always worrying about the short money instead of the long money.”
