October Allen named MINNESOTA MOTHER of the YEAR

By Abigail Blonigen

American Mothers, an organization dedicated to honoring mothers across the nation, has named Duluth resident October Allen as Minnesota’s 2022 Mother of the Year.

The Mother of the Year award recognizes an “admirable mother” in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. According to their website, honorees “represent a mother’s unconditional love, inner strength and courage.”

Allen is from Cass Lake, Minnesota on the Leech Lake Indian Reservation. Her mother struggled with mental health issues and alcoholism, so Allen was placed in foster care around the age of 12.

Allen gave birth to her first child at the age of 17, eventually becoming a mother of five children. Two of the kids, twins, were born premature at just 24 weeks, which left them with severe medical issues.

In 2008, tragedy struck. As the twins approached their first birthday, one of them died unexpectedly of sudden infant death syndrome.

The loss shook the family, and Allen found that she did not have the tools or resources to cope.

“I didn't have it in me,” she said. “I didn’t process the trauma, reach out for help. I didn't know about that. So I delved into a drug addiction.”

Allen said she began abusing pain medication she had on hand from previous medical procedures. The opioid use eventually progressed to methamphetamine.

“It wasn't a very glamorous thing, and it turned very quickly into something dark,” she said.

Allen’s drug use led to a child protection case, and her four children were placed into foster care. Allen found herself homeless and hopeless.

“I didn't believe or trust that there was hope,” she said of the experience. “And the idea of going to treatment was such a mountain to climb.”

“Luckily,” as Allen put it, she wound up in jail with time to detox and stabilize. At that point, Allen decided she would do whatever it took to get back on her feet and be reunited with her family.

Allen struggled to get clean and comply with her courtordered case plan. By that point, her children had been in foster care so long that they were being put up for adoption.

“I came to a place of acceptance, like maybe this is where the sacrifice of being a mother comes in,” Allen said. “I thought maybe I'm not in the best interest for my children. But if I'm not, then I want to support them as much as I can with a healthy transition and finding the best placement option for them.”

This passion for her children’s well-being did not go unnoticed. Allen developed relationships with the providers involved in her case and demonstrated that those healthy relationships extended to her children.

October Allen gives the commencement speech when she graduated from Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College in Cloquet, where she was also named student of the year. Allen's adult daughters, who were students at the same, were in the audience with other family members.

After three long years, Allen was finally reunited with her kids. The judge at the hearing said he had never in 40 years seen anyone do what Allen was able to accomplish, and she was nominated for a parent mentorship program to help other struggling parents regain custody of their children.

Since then, Allen has helped countless families through the child protection process, assisting parents in navigating the systems and finding the stability to reunify with their children.

Housing, in particular, is a hurdle for people trying to get back on their feet, especially for those struggling with addiction or those with a criminal record. Knowing this struggle personally, Allen opened Grace Place in 2018, a longterm homeless housing support program for women in St. Louis County. Grace Place has more than a dozen homes throughout Duluth and opened Zachary Place for men in

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January 2022.

Allen’s husband, Pastor Ron Allen, is also active in the community. The two planted Revive City Church in Duluth in September 2021, a nondenominational, community-based congregation focused on recovery and meeting folks where they are at. Allen is the Sunday school teacher.

“He's gifted at working with men,” Allen said of her husband. “And I'm gifted at working with women, and we're just like a powerhouse team. They call us the royal couple in Duluth, because that's what we do. We always show up.”

Because of the adversity and barriers Allen has faced in her motherhood, she was shocked that she was selected as Minnesota Mother of the Year.

“It almost felt surreal because I don't see myself as this wonderful mother to my children,” she said. “I'm a good mother, but I think I'm viewed as the mother to the community.”

Allen said her proudest moment as a mom was when she was selected student of the year at Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College and gave the commencement speech with her two daughters in the audience as students. A nontraditional student, Allen graduated with a degree in human services at the age of 38.

Allen’s children are December (24), July (21), Nick (17) and Brandon (15).

“My mission was to provide safety and health to my kids, and now they're wonderful,” she said of her children.

In terms of advice for other mothers, Allen stressed letting kids be themselves.

“I really think that if we are to have children that are happy and healthy, it's important that moms accept their kids for who they are and who they were naturally created to be,” she said.

Those who are interested in learning more about Grace Place, or are in need of its services, can go to graceplacehousingsupport.com or call 218-341-7699. D