Tamika Bryant attended Baltimore City public school Maryland Academy of Technology, Health & Science (MATHS) until she dropped out in the ninth grade. She had fallen behind and was considered overage and under-credited. Tamika acknowledged that she wasn’t exactly hanging around people who were going to inspire her.

When he was 16, his mother gave him a stack of papers that included a YouthWorks application. “She was like ‘OK, I’m tired of you sitting on your butt all summer so it’s time for you to get a job,’” Carr recalls with a smile. 

After Joanne lost access to her storefront due to leasing issues outside her control, she continued to operate a smaller scale business on eBay. However, she found she needed a more stable income with dependable benefits, so she returned to MOED 20 years later to start the next chapter in her life.

After she was hired, Chadras offered her back story: It included a history of depression, anxiety and substance abuse that held back the West Baltimore native for years. She tried on her own to get out from the quicksand but found herself stuck, time and again. Through the efforts of the mayor's office and three local nonprofits, however, Chadras says she feels like she has been "reborn." She's employed, living independently and dreaming again about life's possibilities.