My mother didn't grow up the best. She has a sister and a brother, all relatively close in age. They grew up in and out of homeless shelters, in and out of family members' houses. The majority of her life she had to be a mother to her two siblings: cooking meals, getting them ready for school, signing permission slips. Later on she ended up getting pregnant with me at 16, and had to figure out how to provide for us and get me to be the man I am today.

Growing up, I felt like my family was big and close because my cousins didn't live far away. Me, my mom, my uncle, my auntie and her daughter, and my granny all lived in the same apartment building. That apartment was where all the family functions happened: Thanksgivings, parties, everything.

I didn't really have a male figure in my life to give me guidance. My father isn't in my life, and honestly, I was trying to be the opposite of him. So my mom and my auntie had to teach me right from wrong, what I can and can't do as a man. I say all this to say my mom and auntie hustled their whole lives and taught me so many lessons and instilled strong morals into me.

Fast forward: I'm 17, me and my mom are living in Plymouth in a beautiful neighborhood. I'm a junior in high school getting A's and B's, I'm taking basketball seriously, and I felt like life was going great. I could really go to the league and finally live out my dream of getting my mom a mansion while playing in the NBA.

Then I got two knee injuries that stopped me from pursuing that dream. I needed a new plan but didn't know what it should be. On Christmas Day that year, me and my mom became homeless and had to go back to living with my granny. It felt like we were taking steps backward. The plan was to stay for one month while we found a place. One month turned into two, two into four. We ended up in that small room together for a whole year. Me sleeping on the floor, my mom on an air mattress.

In the beginning of that year I was still going to school, keeping my grades up, and letting my mom figure it out. At some point my uncle started talking to me about a construction program that would pay me and give me a meal. I said I'd give it a try and applied to Lake Street Works.

I was accepted. That felt like progress.

But then my mom had a stroke and lost the use of her dominant hand. One night she broke down crying, telling me she felt like a bad mother, like she had failed. I never thought that. But from that day forward I knew I needed to really step up.

Around this time, Lake Street Works was helping students get bank accounts. They helped me get all the right documents so I could start getting paid, and those same documents allowed me to pick up another job at Cub Foods. Now I'm working at Lake Street Works and Cub Foods and starting my senior year. My whole senior year, all I did was work those two jobs and keep my grades at A's and B's. On Christmas Day of my senior year, me and my mom together were able to show enough income to finally get our own place again.

After that I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do. I knew I wanted to stay stabilized so we wouldn't become homeless again. I needed to keep working, but Lake Street Works was coming to an end. My mentor Alex started talking to me about going to school to become a project manager.

At first I was hesitant. I never saw myself going to college, and definitely not for construction. But I trusted what they were telling me. The mentors at Lake Street Works gave me excellent guidance on how to present myself, how to write college essays, and how to interview. Because of their help, I was more than prepared to start this new chapter.

While I was waiting to hear back from Dunwoody and my scholarship applications, Lake Street Works gave me an opportunity to interview with Hunt Electric and become a pre-apprentice. Then I graduated the program, and the final day for seniors came, and I still didn't know if I'd been accepted or received the scholarships.

I get to my third period class and my teacher tells me to come with him to the library, but he won't tell me why. I thought something was wrong.

We walk in, and I see my mentors from Lake Street Works, school counselors, and a camera crew, all there to tell me I'd received a full scholarship. When I got back to class, everyone already knew. I walked in and they screamed and cheered and wanted me to give a speech. Shortly after, I got a second scholarship and was accepted into Dunwoody with almost all of my education paid for.

Since then, I've graduated from Dunwoody and I'm now working as an estimator at Mortenson. It's unreal how I went from being homeless with no plan for my future to where I am now: a career, a home, and a degree. And I'm not the only story like this. That's why Lake Street Works is so special, and I'm so glad it exists.