Alumni Thriving

Becky Perez

Becky Perez, an emerging artist from Los Angeles, California, holds a Bachelor of Arts in Studio from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her creative practice skillfully integrates 3D modeling, printing, laser cutting, and bronze sculpting, exploring themes of resilience and cultural diversity.

Perez is passionate about using her art to foster a sense of community and belonging. She currently serves as an artist-in-residence at Arts Bridging the Gap and as a Creative Program Manager for Stepping Foward, where she has held leadership and mentorship roles, guiding young adults in art and education.

Over the past decade, Perez has dedicated herself to volunteering with various non-profit organizations, particularly A Sense of Home. Her commitment to creating spaces that evoke comfort and nostalgia has led her to design environments that feel like a sense of home. Additionally, she is an emerging production designer, experimenting with spatial design to create safe and a sense of belonging environments.

Perez’s commissioned artwork and cross- functional collaborations are driven by her unwavering commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. She uses her work to promote publicity, fundraising, and entrainment.  See more of Becky’s work here https://www.beckyartstudio.com

Julisa

At 18, Julisa aged out of foster care and entered transitional housing. At 23, Julisa became a single mother. After her very young son was hospitalized with a severe respiratory condition, she became determined to secure stable housing and pursue education. That’s when Julisa met A Sense of Home (ASOH). In 2019, she was provided with a beautiful new home created by ASOH, and she began her nursing education. Julisa has earned the ASOH educational scholarship for two consecutive years. This year, she is graduating from Riverside City College School of Nursing and has applied to the CSUF RN-BSN program for Spring 2025. Julisa is also working as a Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) for the pediatric population through Pacific Home Health Services.

Julisa is an active Pay-It-Forward Alumni member, meaning she and her son frequently attend Home Creations, volunteering to help create a home for a peer. This is a wonderful community celebration that Julisa loves to participate in. She is also a mentor to other former foster youth, with a particular passion for mentoring her peers who are studying nursing.

Read more about Julisa’s journey in People Magazine here.

Chyenne “Chy” Roan-Santini

Chyenne “Chy” Roan-Santini is a model, advocate, and former foster youth from Los Angeles, CA. She received her home creation by A Sense of Home in 2018, after securing her first-ever apartment. Prior to this, she worked as a Program Leader for after school programs in LAUSD. During this time, she had just exited from transitional housing and was living with a relative that was not a safe living environment. This was also around the time that her dream of becoming a fashion model began to manifest. She knew that she was meant for so much more, and was determined to get there.

Utilizing her skills and passion, Chyenne began building a portfolio and going to various auditions around the city without a car, and while still working at the school. As she began to make a name for herself as a freelance model she was able to focus soley on casting and auditions. Eventually, this would lead to her first major modeling job–a fashion campaign with H&M.

After booking the job with H&M independently, Chyenne was even more inspired to be fearless. It was around this same time that a housing opportunity presented itself, and Chyenne secured her very first apartment and learned about A Sense of Home, freeing her of the toxic living environment she was in and giving her the ability to have a safe place to thrive. The day that Chyenne received her home creation was the day that her love for advocacy and service multiplied. After this remarkable act of kindness from the A Sense of Home community,, she was inspired and determined to give it back, becoming a Pay-It-Forward Alumni.

Chyenne continued making strides as an independent model, and began to dive more into her advocacy efforts. ASOH noticed the modeling portfolio she had been building in the years prior, and suported her with getting an agent in Los Angeles. With all of the dedication and effort that Chyenne put into building her portfolio, the work had paid off. The agency loved her work, and she was signed to M Model Management (now Minelli Management). Chyenne is now a successful model and has booked campaigns with brands such as Nike, Porsche, Apple, Audi, Chase Bank, and Facebook, to name a few. Chyenne utilizes her modeling platform to amplify the voices of foster youth and the unhoused community in LA.

Through her advocacy, service with ASOH, and overall dedication to her community, Chyenne has been featured on various platforms such as Fox 11 News, Spectrum News, and Attn Dotcom to share her inspiring journey. She continues to work in fashion and is now working toward becoming an author, going back to school, and expanding in her advocacy efforts. She recently joined an advocacy group, Youth Led Nation, which aims to empower and support youth facing homelessness in LA County.

Chyenne shares “ Thank you A Sense of Home, for not only providing me with community and the true essence of a home, but also for holding my hands as my dedication, service, and hard work led to my true purpose.”

Michelle

Michelle in her own words: “As a former foster youth, I have walked a path that is filled with challenges, but also with hope, resilience, and the unyielding belief that success is possible no matter where you come from. Today, I am a proud mother of three children, two of whom are on the autism spectrum, and I am deeply committed to making a meaningful difference in both my local community and the broader world.

Currently, I work with a nonprofit organization dedicated to mentoring current and former foster youth. My mission is simple but powerful: to show young people that their past does not define their future. The journey from foster care to adulthood is often difficult, but it can also be a pathway to strength, growth, and success. I have learned firsthand that it’s not where you start, but where you choose to go, and that is a message I am passionate about sharing with others.

One of the most transformative elements of my journey has been the profound impact of finding a sense of home. The support, care, and ongoing guidance I received from those who believed in me—especially within my community—has been a cornerstone of my success. It has given me not just a place to belong, but also the foundation to stand tall and pursue my dreams. Home, for me, has been the unwavering belief of mentors, the kindness of community, and the constant reminder that I am not alone. This sense of belonging has fueled my ability to grow, to heal, and to strive for more.

In addition to my advocacy work, I am also driven to build a support system for parents like myself who have children on the autism spectrum. The experience of raising children on the spectrum comes with unique joys and challenges, and I believe in the power of community—specifically a community that includes both former foster youth and parents of children with autism. I want to create a space where we can connect, share experiences, and build each other up. It’s about creating a network that fosters not just survival, but thriving, for families who often feel isolated in their struggles.”

Elizabeth

Elizabeth is a teacher’s aid who is also studying film and TV at Santa Monica College while raising her almost 10-year-old daughter Naomi. After having her home created in October 2019, Elizabeth began bringing her daughter Naomi to volunteer to create homes for their peers. The more they paid it forward, the more they realized that they were a conduit for change. At first, both were painfully shy. With each opportunity to pay it forward, they realized more and more that their voice matters, and they each began to shine in new and different ways. The more they pay it forward, the more they feel connected to the community. The more they pay it forward, the happier they become and they share their contagious joy with others. Elizabeth doesn’t have a car and yet she and Naomi volunteer each and every week, come rain or shine. We are so excited to see what comes next for this amazing mother-daughter duo. We are here to support them both.

Fatima

Fatima is now studying for her master’s degree in social work as she raises her two incredible children Azaiah and Penelope.

After her home creation in April 2019, Fatima was able to take in her siblings and their loves during the pandemic when they were faced with homelessness. As Fatima conveys in her video testimony she has been able to nurture not only herself but her kids, her siblings, and their loves as well as her supportive friends. Fatima has been able to provide shelter for others and build community and healthy relationships.

Recently Fatima and her two remarkable kids joined ASOH in creating Fatima’s sister’s home. Vanesa is studying social work at Cal State LA and hopes to become a social worker for foster youth. Fatima’s son, Azaiah, displayed an astounding work ethic in helping create his aunt’s home. Penelope is a fabulous artist and made beautiful art for her Aunt Vanesa’s home. Vanesa also loves to paint and received an artist’s kit from the volunteers who created her home.

Next, we create a home for her brother, Jacob. The ripple effect continues

Felicia

We first met Felicia in ASOH’s earliest days. It was in 2015 when Felicia was moving into off-campus accommodations near USC so that she could study for her bachelor’s degree in American Studies & Ethnicity at USC. Felicia had successfully achieved a room in a large house but she didn’t have so much as a bed. We created a sense of home for Felicia with an inspired bedroom (replete with desk, wardrobe, princess canopy over her bed and all that a family would provide for their student child setting off to college). Felicia immediately began volunteering with ASOH, paying it forward every weekend. Felicia then graduated, took a job in San Diego and earned a Fulbright Scholarship working in Mexico City.

Felicia later accepted an internship in the Bay Area before returning to Los Angeles in 2019. At that time, ASOH created a full home for Felicia. That space inspired Felicia to prepare for her law school entrance exams. All the while, Felicia never stopped paying-it-forward with ASOH. And Felicia never stopped referring young women to ASOH, including her siblings. Felicia earned a position at her number one choice of law school, Columbia. ASOH was able to support her with the ASOH Scholarship. Just as we have her sister Alexys. Felicia has now graduated, been admitted to the bar and is practicing law in NYC. We wish Felicia much success.

Johna