Troy* age 17: After years of abuse and mistreatment at his family home at the hand of a single parent suffering from mental illness and compounded with drug and alcohol abuse, Troy (age 17 at the time), was able to save himself from jail, homelessness and possibly death due to the work done at Home Horizon. Troy came to us as a last ditch effort to stay out of jail and live without the threat of abuse. Troy had severe difficulty in trusting others due to being misjudged based on his appearance and history of violence in his former home. Through the connections made through counselling and support within Home Horizon, Troy was able to develop sustainable life skills and receive mental health support through a primary care physician and psychiatrist. Troy graduated to a permanent home recently and receives ongoing guidance and counselling from the staff at Home Horizon.

Carla* age 16: A 16 year old girl who was referred to BWH after being abandoned by her mother, who struggled with substance use. This young girl came into the program quite guarded and struggling to trust others. She went on to complete her high school diploma (receiving multiple scholarships), obtain her drivers licence, attend therapy, find employment and get accepted to post secondary. She has since moved into independent living and is completing her college diploma in Social Work, where she hopes to provide youth like her with the type of support that she received while staying at the BWH. She still continues to reach out to Home Horizon staff just to check in and say hi.

Ariana* age 16 had suffered many years of abuse at her family home at the hands of her stepfather. Because of the abuse in her family home, Ariana was withdrawn, self-abusive and self-destructive near the point of having to be institutionalized. After reaching out to Home Horizon, thanks to a connection made at her school, Ariana was able to escape the clutches of continued mental and physical abuse. She has since become stable at her school and making decent grades. Ariana is able to come home to a safe and secure environment where she has stated that the staff at Home Horizon are like family. With life skills training, programs and one on one counselling, Ariana was able to regain her self-esteem and confidence to the point she has recently applied to college with the hopes of working towards a career in Social Services and Psychiatry.

*Names have been changed to protect the identity of the youth.