Zoom

Zoom has walked a long road toward self-sufficiency and emerged stronger for it. Before connecting with Urban Peak, he bounced between the streets and his uncle’s home. A friend told him about The Spot downtown, where he found safety, support and trusted adults. However, as a 22-year-old, he was too old to stay in the overnight shelter and he often spent cold nights outside. Eventually, he stopped accessing services and struck out on his own.

After struggling with substance use, Zoom has worked hard to become clean and sober. When he returned to Urban Peak a few months ago, he was relieved to see familiar faces among the staff.  He is grateful for the shelter’s (Mary’s Place) expanded age range, allowing him to stay full-time while working toward his goals. Since then, Zoom has secured vital documents, a good job at Panera Bread and is working on finding housing.

With newfound stability, Zoom enjoys writing music, drawing, exercising and hanging with his “homies.” He dreams of becoming a famous rapper so he can “buy a nice house for [his] mom.” His journey exemplifies his ethos, that “no struggle is too much to overcome.”