Every year, 600,000 families with 1.3 million children experience homelessness in the United States. That’s a staggering number. Under such heartbreaking circumstances, no one would fault children dealing with homelessness for feeling despair that impacts their relationships, drive and performance in school. But Angelique didn’t succumb to any of that.

Her story is one that can inspire both compassion and support from those not directly touched by homelessness, and serve as a powerful message to the 600,000 families dealing with homelessness: they can get through it.

Angelique’s mother, Leigh, suffers from depression and bipolar disorder, which have made it difficult for her to maintain a steady income. Angelique’s father, originally from Nigeria, lives in California. Now 18, Angelique, Leigh, and Leigh’s mother lived in their car for 8 months when Angelique was 13, and Angelique still managed to maintain straight As during this period.

Rather than making her angry or leaving her feeling defeated, Angelique’s past (and current struggles as a result of her mother’s ongoing battle with bipolar disorder) have galvanized her to help others. While she’s a talented actor and dancer, she wants to become a psychologist so she can help people like her mother who are suffering from mental illness. Her primary goal in the near-term is to become completely independent: “I know I have no safety net. Everything that I want to be, it’s all on me. This experience has driven me to this independence in the way that I never felt like I had an option to neglect my schoolwork, because I knew [it] was my ticket to never having to experience anything like this again.”

Watch Angelique, her family, teachers and mentors discuss her journey, including its happy ending. And prepare to be inspired.

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