A shot at redemption
Damion Thomas said he has been in trouble for most of his life.
Drinking. Drugs. Rehabilitation programs. Slip-ups. More drugs. More trouble. Heroin.
“I lost everything. I haven’t seen my child in two years. My house, my car, my job. I lost trust in my family, my wife. I lost my pride, self-respect,” said the 36-year-old graduate of Community Corrections Association, a Youngstown-based alternative rehabilitation program.
Photo by Robert K Yosay / The Vindicator
Divorcee falls on hard times
Donna Jarvis always had a decent job and never worked paycheck to paycheck. That was before she and her husband divorced and she lost her job at a call center. She went through her savings and her 401K to pay bills. In an effort to get back into the workforce, she enrolled in a medical assistant program and was ready to graduate when she got into car accident. Now, she has school loans and medical bills to add to her financial woes. But she also has a job as a medical assistant at a skilled-care facility. It pays a little more than minimum wage.
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