Leona Coakley-Spring owns Rags to Riches, a consignment shop in Redmond.
In 1972, she left behind a life of poverty in Nassau, Bahamas to pursue her dream of becoming an actress in Chicago, Illinois. Coakley-Spring was a 22-year-old single mother of two — and unbeknownst to her, another baby on the way.
Coakley-Spring still considers the United States her safe haven. But during her first days in this country, the people she trusted took advantage of her vulnerability as a new immigrant.
This story was produced in partnership with the First Days Project.
