Richard began hanging out with an older crowd – adopting their destructive habits – when he was only 11. His father had left home years earlier, forcing his mother to work several jobs, leaving Richard and his siblings with little supervision. “I started at a very young age to do things normal kids wouldn’t – using and getting into trouble.” He dropped out of school and his substance abuse escalated. Unsuccessful at overcoming his addiction, [...]

Maribel’s childhood home was dark and dangerous, filled with addiction and abuse. “My mom was a violent alcoholic, my father was a drug dealer and I was molested from the age of 7 until I was 13.” Maribel bore deep emotional scars, and before long, she began numbing her pain. “I turned to drugs to forget everything that had happened to me.” Her addiction led her to the streets, where she was assaulted again and [...]

“The Mission took a chance with me…” Michael was raised by a single mother who worked several jobs, often forcing her to leave her son to fend for himself. “I veered off into the streets when I was 13, smoking weed and drinking,” he says. “Back then it was just for fun.” But as he grew older, it became his priority – and eventually cost him everything. His marriage ended… he was separated from his [...]

Teresa suffered abuse at the hands of her children’s father and began using drugs to numb her heartache and pain. The tragic situation lasted more than five years and, sadly, she became addicted. “Instead of paying my bills, I would use my money to get high,” she says. Eventually she became homeless… lost her children… and became seriously ill. “My body couldn’t take any more. I was perishing. I was about to die.” Her grandfather, [...]