By Isabela Gamez
The Primavera Foundation
With help from the Primavera Foundation’s Family Pathways Program, Robin Plummer and her four children were able to stay off the streets and begin again.
Robin’s journey to Tucson began with a difficult but life-changing decision. Fleeing domestic violence in Texas, she left everything behind to protect herself and her children.
“It wasn’t the first time,” she said. “But it was the last.”
She initially stayed with her sister in Show Low, Ariz., hoping to find stability. But limited resources, especially for her children, two of whom have special needs, made it impossible to stay.
“I realized they didn’t have anything for my kids over there,” she said.
After a falling-out with her sister, Robin made her way to Tucson with her children. For about a week, they moved from hotel to hotel, unsure of what would come next.
“When I came to Tucson, I was hopping from hotel to hotel… I didn’t know where I was going,” she said.
Everything changed when a stranger stepped in to help. While staying at a hotel off the expressway, a woman made a few calls and connected Robin to Primavera.
Shortly after, she received a call that would change everything.
“When Primavera called me, I was so happy,” she said. “I was so scared of being on the streets with my kids because I had nowhere else to go.”
The timing couldn’t have been more critical.
“I would have been carless, homeless with my kids and things on the street,” Robin said. “They put us in a hotel the day before I turned my rental (car) in. They saved us from being on the street.”
Through the Family Pathways Program, Primavera provided three months of rental assistance, giving Robin the time and stability she needed to rebuild.
“If it wasn’t for the Primavera Foundation, I don’t know what I would have done,” she said. “I don’t know where I would have started.”
During those three months, everything began to fall into place. With support from community connections and housing resources, Robin secured stable housing, enrolled her children in school, and connected them to essential services.
“They saw Primavera and said, ‘You’re good, don’t worry,’” she said.
Her children, once fearful and uncertain, began to settle into a new routine.
“All of us were absolutely terrified,” she said. “I remember them asking me, ‘What are we going to do, Mom? Where are we going to go?’”
Today, those fears have been replaced with stability and hope.
Robin now works in caregiving and is also caring for her son. With support from Primavera staff, she was connected to community resources, including medical supplies and even a wheelchair for her son.
Beyond immediate needs, Robin has focused on long-term goals. She created a checklist when she entered the program, and she’s checked off nearly all of it.
“I’ve completed my financial goals. I’ve gotten my kids to the dentist, I’ve gotten my son his eyeglasses,” she said.
On Nov. 1, 2025, Robin and her family successfully exited the program with stable housing, support systems in place, and a path forward.
“If it wasn’t for Primavera paying rent for those three months, I would not be where I’m at,” she said.
The transformation in her children has been one of the most meaningful changes.
“They’ve changed a lot,” she said. “They are more social and a lot happier.”
Now, Robin is looking toward the future. She’s pursuing a medical certification and considering a path as either a behavioral technician or a registered nurse.
And her long-term goal is clear.
“I want to own a house so that I can pass it on to my kids,” she said. “They will never have to worry about having a roof over their head.”
For others facing similar challenges, Robin offers simple but powerful advice:
“Keep your head up. Life is what you make of it. The more positive you are and the more persistent you are, the farther you’ll be.”
Looking back, she knows just how close her family came to a very different outcome.
“You can have a phone and still be homeless,” she said. “It’s crazy how life can kick you and throw you curveballs.”
But today, thanks to support, resilience, and a second chance, Robin and her children are no longer defined by crisis, but by possibility.
“Life in the world would be a worse place without you guys,” she said of Primavera.
