LEON HARRIS
Finding and sustaining a job can be difficult for anyone in
this economy, but it's even harder for young people with a
behavioral health challenge.
Here's a young woman who has found strength not only
through her Hawaiian culture, but also through her work and
her mentors.
Her work as a peer support specialist has made it
possible, as she describes it, to get her
foot in so many doors.
Please meet Crystal now, who considers her work form nine
to five much more than a job.
[PAUSE]
CRYSTAL
My grandmother was my best friend from as
long as I can remember.
We shared the same room, we did everything together.
We went shopping together, she took me grocery shopping, she
taught me how to cook and clean and, you know, we were
just really close.
And when I was about nine years old, she passed away.
And during that time, you know, it was very difficult
for my grandfather, and he didn't know
exactly what to do.
And he would leave me with the neighbors because he had no
idea what to do and he had no idea how to take care of a
child because my grandmother took care of me
from day one, basically.
And so, I began going through a journey where, you know, I
felt really lost and confused, and I had no idea
what was going on.
And, you know, my grandfather ended up
leaving me with my neighbor.
And my neighbor was at the point where she was like, "You
know, this isn't right for Crystal to grow up in a home
where she doesn't have, like, a mother and a father figure.
And I think that, you know, Crystal would do really well
with my daughter." And, you know, the daughter and her
husband were more than ready to adopt me and take me into
their home , and they were really looking forward to it.
And I lived with them for maybe a, a good few months,
and it ended up turning out that it wasn't gonna happen
because, you know, it, it was a lot of things, and I didn't
understand why until this one particular day when I was back
at my home, my grandfather's home.
And I was kinda looking through my things, and I
opened this birthday card that I had gotten from my mother.
And in this birthday card, a little slip of paper the size
of a fortune cookie paper dropped out ,and it had said,
"Inspected by the Correctional Facilities of the State of
Texas." So I had questioned my grandfather, and I said, "You
know, what is this?
Like, what does this mean?" And then that's when the truth
came out and he told me, "You're mother's in prison,
and she's been in prison since you were born.
Your mother gave birth to you when you were in prison, and
I'm sorry that you had to find out this way."
And I became very angry, and I, I had nowhere to turn.
I eventually ended up living with my Hanai mom, the one
that, you know, I felt that I could turn to for everything.
And my life has gotten better ver since.
And I moved in with her when I was seventeen, and I'm
twenty-one years old now.
I would be asked to participate in trainings or
come and be a guest speaker at different events for, you
know, um, for different agencies that I know of, and
that's how I really was able to get this
job that I have today.
Through my employment, I've been able to participate in
even more trainings and be able to share my experiences
more, and I'm also working with girls that are currently
going through these situations.
And I'm able to kind of help theme and guide them, and I
wish that I had someone like that for me, and now I'm doing
that for others.
Social connectedness and my employment go hand in hand
with one another, and I wanna continue to go down this route
and continue on to having my career set in helping young
women and young adults, you know, go through these systems
of care and be able to rise up on top and be able to share
their stories and basically provide positive changes
within our system, and also break that cycle and be able
to create a better future for our future
generations to come.
I have a youth perspective and I have a professional
perspective.
I know how it feels to be a professional now, working with
young adults and youth that have been through lots of
experiences in their lives and helping them navigate.
I'm trying to help and trying to give them, you know, the
courage and the strength and showing them what resilience
looks like and giving them that example and having them
become their own examples of what courage and strength and
resilience looks like.
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PROGRAM D.S. Simon Productions Inc., WALJ TV, SAMSA,
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