David M. — “Everyone Deserves a Second Chance”

David grew up in a Boston suburb, the son of a veteran turned engineer and a mother who worked as a nurse. He beams with pride when he recalls his first job at age 15 and the early years in his hometown. In adulthood, things took an unfortunate turn for David, and he ended up in prison for eight years.

Once David got out of prison and reentered the community, his relationships with his family members had changed, and so had he. Within a month, David had secured a job and an apartment. However, the trauma he had experienced during his time in prison impacted his ability to remain housed. Soon, David found himself homeless and at Pine Street Inn.

“At Pine Street Inn, I had a case manager who genuinely cared,” David says. “His advocacy is the reason that I got housed. One day, he came to me with a set of keys and said, ‘How would you like to move in on Friday?’ I couldn’t believe it.”

David now says his corner room in Pine Street’s housing is his “kingdom” and he has many reasons to appreciate his home in Pine Street’s housing. “The neighborhood is different from the suburb that I grew up in,” David says. “I like the diverse community and I’ve gotten to know and value it.”

David has grown close to many of the people in his residence and he works to lift up his housemates when they are feeling down. “I like to affirm people – everyone should be honored for who they are, and everyone deserves a second chance. How often can you look at somebody and say, ‘I see you?’ That is what Pine Street Inn did for me.”