“I run two elevators in a building on the Upper West Side. Being in such a tight space can be hard. Sometimes I get flash backs, and feel like I’m right back in prison. At least now, though, I get to push the buttons — I decide when the doors open and close. I work during the day and go to City College at night. Being in college taught me about perseverance, I learned I can do what I put my mind to... I didn’t know that before college. I know I have to push myself hard, I mean real hard, but now I know I can do it. I have to do it. College has been a turning point for me. It’s given me the stamina I need to keep going. I have come a long way and I can’t stop now. Not until I graduate, get my MSW, get out of this elevator and find a job where I can work with troubled teens, like the kind I was. That’s where it’s at for me, I’m determined, and that’s how I want to give back.”– Barbara