Mia’s Next Chapter

“Mia” first came to us as an 11^th grader who had already survived more than most experience in a lifetime. 

As a young girl, she lost her mother to gun violence. Her father struggled with substance use. The family also spent years homeless, which caused Mia and her siblings to move between relatives, foster care, and wherever else they could find a place to stay. 

Fending for herself forced Mia to make choices that changed the course of her life. Looking for a way to help provide for her younger siblings, she became involved with an older man who offered her money. Over time, he drew her into criminal activity that resulted in charges, including an armed robbery. Although she was not the primary person responsible, she still faced the consequences. 

Behind the charges was a young girl carrying years of grief and trauma while also dealing with ADHD and depression. That’s when her LCCR team became involved in her case, and youth advocate Cherrice helped make sure Mia’s needs were addressed alongside her case. Instead of waiting for problems to grow, they addressed them together. 

Cherrice helped connect her to treatment and community resources, talked through problems as they came up and continued showing up as Mia grew and her needs changed. Their three years together reflect something central to LCCR’s youth advocacy work: meaningful relationships with children take time. Trust is built through consistency, through being there during setbacks as well as successes, and through giving a young person the chance to know that the adults supporting them are not going to disappear when things become difficult.

Over the summer, Mia participated in a program that helped her process the trauma she had experienced for so many years. For the first time, she began to see that her circumstances did not have to define her future. She learned to communicate when she was struggling, ask for help and trust the people who wanted to see her succeed. 

Throughout everything, one thing never changed: dance. For Mia, dance was an outlet. It gave her a way to move through the pain she carried and express herself. 

Today, Mia is an honor roll student dual enrolled in high school and college classes. Her aspiration is to become a marine biologist. After seeing everything Mia had accomplished, the judge overseeing her case ended her probation six months early–recognition of the work she had put in to rebuild her life and the commitment she showed every step of the way. 

Mia was Cherrice’s first client when she joined LCCR, and this October marks three years since they began working together. Over that time, their relationship grew far beyond individual appointments or referrals. She stayed alongside Mia through challenges at school, changes in her mental health care, family difficulties, court involvement and the everyday moments when Mia simply needed someone she trusted to answer the phone.

Mia’s progress is her own, but the three years she spent working with Cherrice show what can happen when a child has someone who keeps showing up. Trust is built over time, through setbacks, hard conversations, small wins and the moments in between. For children navigating the legal system, having an adult who stays present can create the stability they need to imagine something beyond the circumstances they have already survived.