Meet Luis.
In his youth, Luis was reckless and got in a lot of trouble. His father, unsure of what else to do, sent him to live with his cousins in Illinois for a while. After a few months, they sent him away as well for being reckless. Now homeless, he survived in Illinois as long as he could before he heard of a program in Grand Rapids called As You Are, a youth collective aimed at breaking the cycle of homelessness in Grand Rapids. He was accepted into the program, found housing and a job, and began making steps to better his life with their support.
During COVID, Luis was furloughed from his job which left a gap in his finances. Unsure of what to do next, Luis connected with a local staffing company to find a job. This gave him the financial stability to purchase his very first home. He said, “It’s crazy. I don’t talk to many of the friends I had before. When I do, most of them can’t believe it. I am just really thankful for AYA and those who helped me along the way. It feels good. A house is different than an apartment, you know? A house will affect my kids, that generational wealth will go to them. I don’t even have kids yet. I’m just thinking about the future I guess.” When asked about the difference of who he is now versus who he was as a reckless teenager, he said, “None of that would have happened without people supporting me. I have seen how some of my friends didn’t get that support and how that affected them. So when I get that support, I’m so thankful and super willing to give it back to somebody who is having a hard time.”
He went on to say, “Everywhere I have turned there has been privilege and help. I am not blind to it. I try to notice it, and all the privilege I’ve been given, I try to give it back. Like in Spiderman, ‘with great power comes great responsibility,’ and privilege is a great amount of power, so with that you have a lot of responsibility to help other people.” Luis is now a homeowner, holding a successful career, and on the board with AYA Youth Collective helping others any way he can.