“A lot of young people have Mercy Home recommended to them,” he said. “For me, I looked for and found it myself.”

Carlos lived with his parents in a dangerous neighborhood, where they were afraid to go out after dark. But things weren’t much better inside the home.

As the breadwinner, Carlos’s father provided for the family, but struggled with alcohol abuse. He went to jail after a DUI during Carlos’s sophomore year of high school, adding further strain to an already rocky father-son relationship.

Carlos’s mother worked on the assembly line at a factory, but her minimum wage was barely enough to scrape by. As financial burdens and stress intensified, Carlos and his mother became more irritable and fought more often.

Making matters worse, his downstairs neighbors added to the chaos. “They were fighting, arguing every day, and throwing stuff,” Carlos remembered. “Every day, we heard yelling, fighting, and crying. It was hard.”

Carlos’s grades took a nosedive his junior year. He was depressed and had dark thoughts.  So when he learned about Mercy Home, he didn’t hesitate to act.

“I was so tense and anxious, I just wanted out of my home,” Carlos said. “I immediately called Mercy Home and said, ‘Hey, I’m in a pretty bad situation.’” He moved in shortly thereafter.

Carlos had a positive first impression of Mercy Home. He liked the campus and thought everyone was super nice. Even so, it took some adjustment.

“When I moved in, I had a roommate—something that I never really had before,” he said. “I had to think about how my actions affected him. If I left my dirty clothes out, I bet he’s not going to like that.”

Even with the new concerns, he quickly embraced the opportunity to live with other young men his age.

“Growing up as an only child, then basically living with seven other people my age—I like it a lot because it’s what I imagine having siblings would be like,” he said.

During his time at Mercy Home, Carlos improved his organizational skills and time management. The rules and guidance from our coworkers come from a good place, he said.

“They keep my interests in mind when they expect me to do something, even if it drives me insane,” Carlos said. “It’s helped me grow a lot.”

Carlos has always been interested in academic pursuits, but Mercy Home reinforced his motivation to continue his education. After graduating high school in the spring, Carlos began summer classes at a nearby community college. He plans on completing his general education requirements before transferring to a four-year college.

“I feel like if I hadn’t come to Mercy Home, I wouldn’t have been motivated to complete college,” he said. “It’s hard to express how grateful I am.”

Carlos is still mulling over his career options. Inclined toward science, math, and engineering, he is considering a career as a mathematician, engineer, or physicist. He also has an interest in journalism.

Mercy Home helped him prepare for his future career through job labs, where he learned such skills as how to put together a resume, write a cover letter, and dress professionally for work.

When asked about the best part of Mercy Home, Carlos thought long and hard before answering.

“Exposure,” he said. “Exposure to different things, exposure to opportunities. That’s helped me and a lot of other people here as well.”