As a single mom trying to figure out how she could attend GED classes and still care for Lorenzo, her 3-month-old son, Ashley was desperate—“just desperate enough” to ask for support, she said.

At Highline Community College, she summoned the courage to walk into CHSW’s Early Learning Center. And that one visit launched a transformation in Ashley’s life that continues to this very day.

“There was a waiting list for infant care when I signed up, and I remember feeling defeated at first. If I couldn’t find childcare, I would not be able to start my GED classes,” she said. “Much to my surprise, though, two weeks later a spot opened up for my son. I was so excited!”

Every day, Ashley and Lorenzo would ride public transit to the center. She would drop him off in the infant class and then walk to campus for her own classes, returning on breaks to breastfeed.

“I was able to go to my GED classes and have the time to study, knowing my son was happy and being taken care of while learning and preparing for school,” she said. “The staff was so caring and concerned. They were the added layer of support I needed to stay on track.”

It took a heroic effort for Ashley to get back on track in the first place. Placed in foster care when her parents went to prison, she dropped out of high school and was addicted to heroin. Her birth mom, a recovering addict herself, provided a lifeline, helping Ashley move to Kent and start changing her life.

“I knew I had to get clean and get back into school, both for my future and for Lorenzo,” she said. And she succeeded on both fronts. Ashley has been clean for more than five years, and kept going once she got her GED—she also earned an associate’s degree in human services, and currently has a little more than a year remaining to earn a BA in youth development. Her goal is to work with at-risk youth.

For now, however, family comes first. Lorenzo is nearly 5, and still attends CHSW classes. A daughter, Lucy, is due in November, and Ashley plans to take time off from her studies in the months after giving birth. Earlier in 2019, she and her partner of four years purchased their own home.

It’s been a remarkable turnaround for a woman who once saw no way out. “Through the support of CHSW, we have been able to accomplish many great things,” Ashley said. “I felt we had so many to help us; my son got to choose holiday gifts, and they had soup drives and family nights. We got tickets to the zoo and other opportunities we never would have had.”

Today, Ashley is creating her own opportunities—and serving as an example of what’s possible with the right support at the right time.