JANUARY 2016 • PAGE 13
ProudlyStanding
withFirstNations,
Inuit&MétisFamilies
Deanne
Crothers
MLAforSt.James
204-415-0883
DeanneCrothers.ca
Greg
Selinger
MLAforSt.Boniface
204-237-9247
GregSelinger.ca
Nancy
Allan
MLAforSt.Vital
204-237-8771
NancyAllan.ca
Tom
Nevakshonoff
MLAforInterlake
204-664-2000
TomNevakshonoff.ca
Ron
Lemieux
MLAforDawsonTrail
204-878-4644
Ron-Lemieux.ca
Ron
Kostyshyn
MLAforSwanRiver
204-734-4900
RonKostyshyn.ca
Clarence
Pettersen
MLAforFlinFlon
204-687-3367
ClarencePettersen.ca
Kerri
Irvin-Ross
MLAforFortRichmond
204-475-9433
KerriIrvinRoss.ca
Sharon
Blady
MLAforKirkfieldPark
204-832-2318
SharonBlady.ca
Melanie
Wight
MLAforBurrows
204-421-9414
MelanieWight.ca
James
Allum
MLAforFort
Garry-Riverview
204-475-2270
JamesAllum.ca
Amanda
Lathlin
MLAforThePas
204-623-2034
AmandaLathlin.ca
Gord
Mackintosh
MLAforSt.Johns
204-582-1550
GordMackintosh.ca
Dave
Chomiak
MLAforKildonan
204-334-5060
DaveChomiak.ca
It was four years ago that I first interviewed
Lady K about her struggles to get off the
street and I wanted to know what she thought
about Tina Fontaine.
When I first read about Fontaine and
her struggles, I couldn't help but notice the
parallels between her and Lady K. Both had
lost a parent that sent each on a downward
spiral into drugs and working to support that
habit.
And like Fontaine, Lady K met an older
man who exploited her addiction.
There are differences though.
Lady K survived a vicious sexual assault
only to return to the streets.
This despite she knew and was friends
with some of the women who either went
missing or murdered.
She doesn't have an easy answer for why
she got off the streets but four years later
finds her in a different place.
Lady K is in a stable relationship expecting
her second child since leaving the streets
behind but says her sobriety remains a
constant struggle.
She is still worried about young women
like Tina Fontaine still on the street.
"You see them when you drive in the area,
" said Lady K. "You can't help but feel sorry
for them. And you want to tell them there's
more to life than
being out there. I've done that in the past.
Talked to them. Let them know where I was
and where I am now."
However, Lady K realizes that it would
have been hard to get through to her at that
age. She still tries though.
"But they don't listen," said Lady K. "I think
there has to be more resources out there
that these girls are aware of to try and help
them. That there is a better way."
She put her education on hold after finding
out that she was going to have another baby
but Lady K is determined to finish and move
on and become a social worker. She enjoys
volunteering her time and connecting with
people.
"I don't put any blame on the girls who
are out there because they're just trying
to support their habit. There only doing
whatever they have to do to escape whatever
they're feeling," she said.
She knows that without men constantly
on the prowl for young women that it would
cut down on the numbers of girls out on the
street.
And when she was first interviewed four
years ago, Lady K was thinking of using her
real name but without missing a beat insists
on her anonymity.
"It's not for me," said
Lady K. "It's for my
children. I want to be
honest with them about
who I am and what I've
done but I want to tell
them when the time is
right. When they can,
you know, handle it and
maybe understand."
And she wants
people to realize that
there are many more
women and girls out
there just like Tina
Fontaine.
NO ONE IS
dISpOSABlE
By Trevor Greyeyes
