Holly's teen years have been a roller coaster of abandonment and drug abuse. Her downhill spiral began when she was 15. That's when her mother moved out and left her with her stepfather.
"I didn't get along with him at all," she said. "I moved in with one of my friends. I was using (drugs) a lot."
Drug addiction is common among her relatives, and Holly soon fell victim to the family curse.
She dabbled in other drugs, but it was her methamphetamine addiction that eventually forced her into rehab. She spent a year and a half in treatment in her hometown. Once she got out, she stayed clear of meth, but turned to ecstasy and marijuana.
"I lost my job because I kept calling in and I wasn't working," she said. "I kept using."
Holly knew she needed a change. She needed to leave her hometown and the circle of friends who provided drugs and excuses for dropping out of high school and not working.
"I came down here and I just stopped. I knew if I got away from all my friends, I was determined to stop," she said. "A lot of people can't do that. But it's something I knew for my body and myself that I really needed to do."
At 18, Holly found herself in Colorado Springs living with her brother. That arrangement lasted two weeks.
"He changed his mind," she said. "He didn't want me there any more. He said, 'You have a week to leave.'"
So Holly found herself on the verge of being homeless in a strange city as she fought to stay off drugs. Fortunately, one of her brother's neighbors pointed her to Urban Peak. The nonprofit organization offers transitional housing and other services to 14- to 18-yearolds who have nowhere else to go. It's one of 14 nonprofit organizations that receive donations through The Gazette/El Pomar Foundation Empty Stocking Fund.
At Urban Peak, Holly got more than a warm welcome and safe place to stay. She got encouragement and help with her job search. She now comes home from work and studies for her GED with the help of an Urban Peak instructor.
She's come to realize the common stereotype of homeless people is unfair.
"I grew up knowing that shelter homes were for homeless people that were lazy and that kind of thing," she said. "But I realized when I got here it was just kids in my situation that needed help and somewhere to go."
Urban Peak has taught her greater responsibility, she said. Residents are required to complete assigned chores and either attend high school or work to earn privileges. She considers the roughly 20 kids who live with her to be her friends.
Between her connections at Urban Peak and her boyfriend, Holly says she's managed to stay drug-free and improve her self-esteem.
Without those positive influences, Holly says she would've fallen back into her familiar pattern of joblessness and drug abuse. Holly says she's just one example of the good that donations to Urban Peak can accomplish.
"I don't think people realize what their money does. It gives us teens that are really struggling with life a place to live, teens with backgrounds like drug abuse, sexual abuse," she said.
