The Stories
Honors Student and Athlete - Shameyah
A World of Possibilities
Shameyah moved to Tampa the summer before her junior year of high school. A model student, she was intelligent, athletic, beautiful and motivated. When school began, she quickly made friends and easily adapted to her new surroundings. Her classmates and teachers probably thought she had it all. But behind the winning smile and outgoing personality was a teenager living in fear. Shameyah's personal life was in turmoil, and a few months into the school year, she no longer had a place to call home.
Life Before Homelessness
Shameyah's charming accent reflects her Caribbean heritage. Born in Antigua, she moved to St. Croix at age seven and to St. Thomas (U.S. Virgin Islands) at age 14. When Shameyah was 15, her mother saw better opportunities and stability for her daughter, and sent Shameyah to live with an uncle in Texas. She thrived under his influence for a year until he was deployed for military service.
Only 16, Shameyah could not stay in Texas without a guardian. She was reluctantly preparing to return to St. Thomas when her father, absent for the majority of her life, agreed to accept custody. Shameyah moved to Tampa to live with him, but her new life was once again short-lived. Tensions mounted and escalated until one final confrontation when her father told her she had to leave. With no future for her back in the islands and her uncle still deployed overseas, Shameyah was 16 years old and homeless.
Life Without A Home
Over the next year and a half, Shameyah stayed with different friends, jumping from home to home each night for a place to sleep. Despite being homeless, she desperately tried to have a normal high school experience. Her favorite subjects were anatomy and math, and she worked hard to maintain an A average in all of her classes. Shameyah studied, played basketball and volleyball, and participated in ROTC while juggling a part-time job at a fast-food restaurant.
Shameyah's strong will to survive helped her through the daily struggles, but without parental support she felt empty and alone, especially when it came time to celebrate senior-year milestones. Shameyah couldn't afford to buy her graduation pictures. She volunteered at the school to earn a free ticket to the prom and scraped together just enough money to buy a dress for the dance. Shameyah did get to attend Grad Night with the rest of her classmates, thanks to the generosity of a teacher who purchased a ticket for her.
Life Now
After graduating from high school with a 3.8 GPA, Shameyah began living in a transitional housing program for young women. In addition to providing a safe place to live, the program offers support services to help residents become self-sufficient. Although Shameyah is grateful to have a bed of her own and room to house her belongings, she's tired of having to rely on others for help and is eager to gain her independence.
Shameyah wants to attend a state university but doesn't have the money. Complicating matters, she has to replace all her identification and documents that were lost when her purse was stolen. Without them, she can’t apply for scholarships or even attend community college. For now, she works at the mall, saving money for her education. She hopes to transfer to a university within a couple of years and double major in business marketing and engineering.
An aspiring young woman with big dreams, Shameyah wants to someday create her own clothing line and travel to Europe. However, she has been forced to grow up quickly and lives with a constant uncertainty of what the future will bring. At 18, Shameyah has already overcome obstacles most people will never face - obstacles that have taught her that no matter what, her perseverance and hard work will ultimately lead to fulfilling her dreams.
