Angelica Gonzalez is a vibrant, articulate and energetic young woman, full of dreams and aspirations. But growing up, Angelica’s future seemed less than hope-filled. From the time she was a toddler, Angelica lived with her mom in cars, shelters and sometimes on the street. She didn’t regularly attend school, had poor health, and often went to sleep hungry. At 11 years old, Angelica ran away and lived on her own until moving in with her dad in Auburn, WA. Though she now had a roof over her head, Angelica had extremely low self-esteem and often found herself in trouble. At 18, Angelica was homeless, pregnant, and a high school dropout.
The birth of her daughter, Jasmine, was a turning point for Angelica. “I remember thinking: How can I bring a child into this world and basically put her in the same situation I came from? I hated my life, and I didn’t want that for her,” she says. Motivated to return to school, Angelica faced huge challenges in finding a place to live, caring for her daughter, attending high school, and trying to make ends meet. “I finally just told my teacher that I didn’t have a home; that I was struggling,” says Angelica. Angelica’s teacher contacted Communities In Schools’ for assistance. “The next day, I came to school and they gave me a bag full of supplies like shampoo, conditioner and lots of other stuff. They helped me with business clothes, food vouchers, and baby supplies. It was such a pick-me-up. It was so wonderful.”
With her new career clothes, Angelica attended a job fair and found a way to pay the bills. With the continued support of her teacher and Communities In Schools, Angelica found day care for her daughter and received her high school diploma. “Graduating high school gave me the confidence to try out college – just to give it a try. I worked hard, and I got a 3.8 my first quarter. I was stunned,” says Angelica.
Two years later, Angelica is still an honors student at Green River Community College, and will attend the University of Washington in Tacoma this fall to begin a bachelor’s degree in business. “I’m just really happy about my life and happy that I can provide for my daughter,” she says. Angelica is already making a difference in Jasmine’s life by reading to her regularly and sharing her new love for learning. “I’m not only changing my daughter’s life,” she says, “I’m changing the lives of my grandchildren – all those people that she’s going to touch. Because it doesn’t stop with me – it keeps going to the next generation.”
Angelica has worked hard, and with the help of a caring teacher and Communities In Schools she has succeeded in reaching and surpassing her goals. “Communities In Schools opened that first door for me to walk through. And that gave me encouragement to keep going.”
