"I felt the best I'd felt in a whole year," [Patti Ershowsky] said after a recent visit for a haircut and makeup session. "It makes such a difference."

"You want to feel you can leave the house, and no one's going to look at you funny," [Trish Alonso] said. "You want to feel like you have control over what's happening."

"It's a blessing," she said of the center. "It was the happiest I'd felt in a year."