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Submitted by: Susanne Johnson
My name is Kenneth C. Before I was born, my mother was a drinker and a drug addict. When I was born, I had cocaine in my system. I never knew much about my mom, but I heard she was in jail. I stayed with my grandma until I was two. I was then put into foster care and was there for a year. When I was three and a half, I was put up for adoption. When my soon-to-be adoptive mom and dad walked into the room, I was the one they picked out of hundreds of other kids. A few days later, I got to go to my new home.
At first the family didn’t know me, but they accepted me as their own which was awesome. When I was adopted by this family, my brother was adopted with me, but he was abusive and violent. He had ADD. He threatened to kill me, and he even choked me a few times. He had to be put up for adoption later on, and I was alone with my new family and new home. I had a mother and father, but in 2003 my father died of a brain tumor, and my mom had to raise six kids on her own. In 2005 my family moved to Idaho, and I was bullied constantly. I got into fights and lost all of them. I didn’t like school then. It was torture every year, and at every school I went to, I was bullied and picked on. I was a smart kid, but I was bullied a lot. In sixth grade the bullying got worse and it made me depressed. I wanted to die, but I couldn’t. I kept thinking of friends and family and what they would think if I was gone.
After sixth grade my life turned around, and I switched to a private charter school. I was doing well, and I got A’s and B’s. I was nominated for a lot of awards, and I became known throughout the school district. I showed good character, and I set an example for the younger students. I learned that I had a habit of helping people and having good character in my middle school years. When high school came along, my life changed again. I started acting up, bullying people and messing with people, but months later I saw the impact I had, and something snapped in my head. I started going back to helping people and being nice to them. A lot of teachers and friends helped shape the person I am today, and I have learned to be the better person and help out when needed.