Doing the right thing

I grew up without a dad in a really tough neighborhood. My mom did a great job taking care of me, but there were too many negative influences in my neighborhood. I fell in with a bad crowd and got into some trouble. I ended up being put under house arrest, then in an after-school program, and finally the Weekend Alternative Program at the Diakon Wilderness Center.

When I finished the weekend program I decided I wanted to join Flight, hoping for help in finding a job. When I started with Flight I realized it was much more than a program to help me find a job. Flight members quickly became my family and supported me through everything in my life. They helped me stay out of trouble, gave me positive friends, helped me prioritize my life and showed me that I could be a good member of the community.

When my girlfriend and I faced her pregnancy, Flight didn’t give up on me. They stood by my side and helped me to put my life together so that I could be a good dad. The encouraged me to do cyber-school so that I could be home and help take care of my daughter. They helped me learn the work ethic I need for my job. They taught me all about being a dad and how to be responsible for my family.

Today, I am up early every morning taking care of my daughter and doing my cyber-school. When my girlfriend gets home from work, I go to my job for five or six hours and come home late at night. I wake up the next day and do it all again. It isn’t a perfect life and it isn’t easy, but Flight taught me that we have to take responsibility for our actions and, sometimes, that makes our lives hard.

Without Flight, I do not think I would be the person I am today; a teenage father who is doing the right thing, working hard and taking care of my daughter.

~ Jordan (with daughter Niya)

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