A Safe Place for Women in Need
Hope for Her is a safe place where women experiencing crisis and trauma find the strength, skills and support they need to rebuild their best lives.
As a nonprofit founded by women who’ve endured serious life challenges, we know firsthand that healing happens from within. That’s why we work one-on-one with women to help restore their confidence and self-worth, remove barriers to safety and survival, and rebuild critical life skills to thrive.
From housing, childcare and employment to food, transportation and clothing, we help identify needs, create plans to address them, and stay with women and their families every step of the journey — for a lifetime or as long as they need us.
Together, we transform overwhelming circumstances into opportunities to ensure every woman can live God’s purpose for her life — today, tomorrow and always.
Born Out of Brokenness
A young, educated woman seemed to have the perfect life. She had a husband and two beautiful children, an impressive job, and was pursuing her master’s degree on her way up the corporate ladder. When people looked at her, they thought she had it all.
She did, too — at least in the beginning. But this wasn’t God’s plan for her life.
As she prioritized personal happiness and material success, God moved to second place in her heart. Her perfect marriage slowly transformed into one of abuse. She soon found herself as a divorced single mom with a demanding job and the added stressors of school. As life became a daily struggle, she turned to alcohol for answers. Her addiction nearly cost her everything — her job and her family. She could no longer afford the electricity in her home. She and her two small children were on the verge of homelessness. Her life was spiraling in a direction she didn’t understand. Where was God in all of this? What was His purpose for her life?
As she laid face-down on her living room floor feeling humbled and utterly broken, tears of sorrow poured down her cheeks. She pled for forgiveness and help. In that moment, she surrendered herself to God. And in that moment, she realized that He’d never left her. He’d waited for her to walk through the raging storm of life so she could use her personal trauma to help countless others heal from theirs. Indeed, the Lord knew the plans He had for her, plans to prosper her and not to harm her, plans to give her hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).
As she slowly started putting the pieces of her life back together, she dedicated her life to ensuring every woman going through overwhelming obstacles would have the help and hope they needed to get back on their feet, care for their children and live God’s purpose for their lives.
And with that, Hope for Her was born. This woman who’d been through so much was Cheryl Hickman — our founder and executive director.
Within a matter of months, God opened doors to help Cheryl start a nonprofit, originally called the Women’s Resource Center of Tampa. During the first year in 2003, Cheryl and her dedicated team of volunteers assisted 100 women and their families who had nowhere else to turn. Now 16 years later, through the power of the Holy Spirit, Hope for Her serves 1,200 families annually and counting. What started as one person and one broken family sparked the restoration of more than 45,000 others. Cheryl’s story continues through the lives of every woman who walks through our doors today.