Going through people’s garbage to get food. Stealing from Goodwill to have clothes that fit. Ingrid grew up in extreme poverty with her family. Did her education stand a chance?

She loved going to school. But when her parents became addicted to alcohol and drugs, she was forced to miss school to care for her baby sister. Ingrid became pregnant at 17 and dropped out altogether. Education: halt. Watch what happened next for Ingrid in the video above.

About Reconnecting Youth: Through this program, United Way aims to link at-risk youth with the mentoring and education coaching they need to get their GED and start on the path to a stable, fulfilling career. There are 14,000 youth ages 16-24 in King County who dropped out and aren’t working. Our future workforce needs our support. More on Reconnecting Youth >>