Everyone has their own version of what the term ‘success’ holds. The value, the meaning, the path, the truths and sifting through all the noise to come to a conclusion. Success often comes with an attachment word, ‘made’, insinuating that in order to succeed, one must ‘make it’, whatever that means to you the reader.
Michael Jordan? Many would deem him successful, a basketball superstar with a famous shoe line, but also a life story full of pitfalls. Derek Jeter, Donald Trump, Ellen DeGeneres, Steve Harvey, Justin Bieber. All are successful in their own right, all have made moves in their journeys that have impacted people in some form and elevated their social status that some choose to attain. But all of those success stories have a side people don’t often talk about, as success is often the neon light above an ugly roadhouse of trials those individuals had to overcome.
Dabria DeWells is certainly not claiming to be in the same league as any celebrity. She’s not standing and proclaiming she needs to be followed. But DeWells does have a dark side, and a shining light hanging above it. And there is plenty of ground and right to say DeWells is a success story in her own right.
The most recent graduate from West Noble’s Turning Point program, DeWells turned what she herself tabs as an ‘awful’ situation to now an ongoing, maturing hope in her life.
“I think when you first get here, a lot of people come in here thinking this is the place where you send all the bad kids,” DeWells said of Turning Point. “That can give somebody who might need Turning Point a lot of anxiety. It did at first for me. As you get to know the people, you realize this is a safe space. The one-on-one helps things get dealt with a lot better. It’s a place that’s definitely helped me.”
DeWells isn’t above admitting some poor choices in her past spiraled into what got her to Turning Point, but also realizes that she had to do a bit of autocorrecting, not just with her behavior and attitude, but to heal some old wounds as well. It would be a fight, but as now a four-year graduate of the program, there are very clear and audible progressions in DeWell’s tone and approach.
“I went from the type of person, when I was at the high school, that I didn’t care about school,” DeWells said. “I didn’t care about much of anything. I had no plans for college, nothing lined up. But coming here, Turning Point has ‘Family Time’ where we talk about our future, how to be prepared, how to be a responsible adult. That was a huge part of my life. I can’t thank them enough for those conversations.”
There is an intention for DeWells to learn from her past. Looking to attend Ivy Tech this fall, she is looking to study psychology and earn an Associate’s Degree, and eventually a Master’s Degree. And as an advocate for Turning Point, DeWells has happily offered her insight and presence for future students who could use her heart to help theirs.
“I would do anything to make people understand that this is a very good place and how much it can actually help somebody.”