Chaos seemed to follow Hunter wherever he went—or at least, that’s how it felt.

Every morning, Hunter was woken up by the sounds of shouting. It seemed impossible for his parents to get along. There was no topic that they couldn’t fight over.

As an only child, Hunter felt very alone in his home. His parents took a passing interest in him, but their tangled personal lives and screaming matches always took precedence.

Because his parents behaved this way Hunter’s whole life, he acted out at school starting at a young age. He was desperate for attention, of any kind, from anyone. Unfortunately, this quickly earned him the reputation of being “difficult” by his teachers and “weird” by his peers. When he did interact with anyone at school, it was in a negative capacity. He wasn’t afraid to get into fights with fellow students.

Between the fighting at home and at school, Hunter had no place where he felt safe. He dreamed of turning 18, moving out of his parents’ home, and going to college, but his grades were barely passing. He was certain his dream would never come true, so he didn’t mention it to anyone.

When Hunter began high school, he was assigned to a new guidance counselor. Hunter didn’t usually open up to people, but for some reason he felt safe around her. Maybe it was because she didn’t look at him like he was a bad kid—that was what he was used to.

He explained his problems at home and at school, as well as his bad grades. His guidance counselor told him that she found a possible solution for him: Mercy Home. He was initially skeptical. Moving out of his home into an unknown place sounded scary. But when he thought of how unhappy he was—and had always been—he figured things could only get better. He agreed to give it a try.

Living at Mercy Home was unlike anything Hunter had ever experienced. At home, he was used to being alone and doing his own thing. Nobody cared how late he stayed up, if he did his homework, or even if he did chores. Mercy Home was different. He was always around other boys, which took some getting used to. And he had to adjust to adhering to a daily routine.

But, despite these changes, Hunter began to thrive. It was nice having other boys to spend time with. And instead of the angry indifference he received from his parents, he was greeted with warmth and care by our coworkers. 

Best of all, Hunter worked hard with his tutors to raise his grades and earned his first A last semester! He has shared his goal of going to college with us, and we are doing everything we can to support him as he achieves his dreams.

Thank you for giving kids like Hunter a warm, supportive home where they are always welcome and wanted.

Please note: Because we care deeply about protecting our children’s privacy, the names and certain identifying details in this story have been changed.