"A Native American, Lozano describes growing up in a loving but "dysfunctional" family In Oakland and Antioch. She was sexually assaulted as a child and began running away at age 11, landing in a dangerous mire of gangs, juvenile crime, abusive boyfriends and sex work. After giving birth to the first of her four children at age 15, she became addicted to drugs, lived at times in her truck and lost custody of her children."
"Her life only got worse after her first boyfriend, the father of three of her children, was murdered in Oakland. Several months later, another boyfriend shot her in the face with a flare gun, with the flare barely missing her carotid artery. That February 2023 shooting, which left a permanent burn scar on her left cheek, could be said to be Lozano's rock bottom. Three months later, she signed on for whatever the Bay Area Rescue Mission could teach her."
"More than two years sober, Lozano has regained custody of her four children, who live with her at the rescue mission's shelter for women and children, which housed 151 women and children in 2024. Lozano also works there as a residential assistant. As she goes about her job, she wears a smile, likes to hug people and exudes ease with the person she's become."
Martina Lozano, a Native American woman from Oakland and Antioch, endured childhood sexual assault, running away at 11, involvement with gangs and sex work, teenage motherhood, addiction, and periods of living in her truck. After her boyfriend's 2022 murder and a February 2023 flare-gun shooting that scarred her cheek, she reached a turning point and enrolled in a year-long holistic recovery program at the Bay Area Rescue Mission. More than two years sober, she regained custody of her four children who live with her at the shelter, works as a residential assistant, and radiates visible inner joy and ease.
Read at The Mercury News
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