When Erica turned 12, her parents separated, and a long, ugly divorce ensued. After her mother kicked her out of the house, Erica went to live with her father. At the time, he was not emotionally able to raise a teenage girl. Erica was often left alone and soon found boys and partying as her escape. “I lived for the party, for the rush.” All of the partying eventually led Erica to begin using, which turned into being under the influence more often than not. Erica surrounded herself with people who had bad intentions and learned to steal from malls. She became hooked on the thrill of stealing the things she wanted. Living those high highs and detrimental lows caused her a lot of emotional pain. In hopes of making all of the pain go away, Erica attempted suicide.

After completing a mandatory program through California Youth Services (CYS). Margie Diaz, Executive Director of CYS and Hope Harbor therapist, shared with Erica’s parents about the life-saving programs at Hope Harbor. Immediately, Erica found stability and a loving family unit. After not speaking to her mother for months and carrying a lot of hatred toward her, Erica and her family found healing through their continued therapy sessions, and she cherishes their relationship more than anything. Erica also felt that she gained perspective from her house sisters, “they impacted my life.”

Hope Harbor taught Erica how to self-reflect and learn resilience through hardship. “I pride myself on the perspective I learned and carry that with me to this day.” Hope Harbor has given Erica the tools to make the right decisions with her future self in mind. While living at Hope Harbor, Erica found a quote she clung to: “You can’t have a rainbow without a little rain.” This quote helped Erica remember that everything would be ok and foreshadowed that her life would be better than she imagined.

Today, Erica is exceptionally disciplined and goal-oriented. She has a commercial real estate career and was named Employee of the Year in 2023! She has found true love and still lives for the rush, but now she sees this through traveling the world and experiencing all that life has to offer.

“I am so grateful for the staff, volunteers and donors. No matter how you are involved with Hope Harbor, you are changing lives.”