CHARLEE Success Stories Ruth Ruth, a 19 year old freshman at Florida International University didn’t always see the light at the end of the tunnel. At the age of 10 she was pulled by the Department of Children and Families from her abusive home and put into the foster care system. For nine months Ruth was shuffled between shelters and foster homes when finally she found comfort when she was placed with CHARLEE in our Gladstone Center for Girls. After a nine months stay at Gladstone, Ruth was moved to a DCF home where she thought she’d found solace and stability. Three years later Ruth was moved back to Gladstone when it was revealed that her younger sister, who was housed at the same location, was being mistreated. Finally after a short period of time, Ruth moved to the Kendallwood Group Home, where she after time she felt safe, but began to search for a sense of self. All the while Ruth attended Miami Killian Senior High School where she was a member of the soccer and softball teams, the captain of the rifle team and was a member of ROTC. She excelled in both her extracurricular activities and her school work which prompted CHARLEE to allow her to enter the Independent Living Program at just 15. Ruth loved her new found independence, but with that came responsibility for which she just wasn’t ready. CHARLEE pulled Ruth from the ILP program after she began getting into trouble. Ruth realized after being placed back into a group home, that she was lucky to have found stability and was given another chance to continue her education and eventually go to college. Now at 19 years old, Ruth is back with her parents and living the life she always dreamrd of. Having just graduated from High School with honors, Ruth was a member of the National Honor Society, number 116 in her class of 800 and graduated with a 4.3 GPA. Evidence that Ruth learned the importance of responsibility and that hard work does pay off. Ruth received the Bright Future Scholarship for 75% of her college tuition. Last summer Ruth entered FIU as a freshman and is now studying Exercise Physiology. During her first college classes, Ruth decided she needed something to get involved in outside of school. So she joined the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training Program where she would raise money for the charity while making a commitment to run the San Francisco marathon. This wasn’t a bad way to get to the west coast to visit some friends too! After six months of training and befriending her team Mentor – a Leukemia survivor – the experience not only opened her eyes but taught her that there are other’s out there that have hardships too and that with dedication and a little hard work she can accomplish anything that stands in her way. Crossing the finish-line in San Francisco was a big accomplishment in Ruth’s life. Looking ahead toward her college graduation in Spring of 09’, Ruth is working daily toward her dream of becoming an Aerospace Physiologist.