Sal's Journey

Growing up Sal was always on the move. His family moved back and forth between Mexico and California, causing a difficult adolescence. At the age of 18, Sal found himself incarcerated after a regrettable crime, and sentenced to three years of probation. Sal describes his interaction with the justice system as humiliating and left him with a loss of trust in law enforcement. 

 

“When my sentencing was over I was pretty much considered just a felon.” - Sal

 

After completing his probation, Sal faced the hard reality of living with a felony. Sal was soon kicked out of his school and was relocated to a continuation school to complete his education. Although Sal felt out of place, he was determined to receive his education and graduated within a few months. Sal quickly applied for college and began his path toward a career. Sal knew this path would pose obstacles, but he was committed to securing a successful future. 

 

Sal worked at his father’s company while in school but yearned for employment that aligned with his interests. However, Sal soon realized the struggles of starting a career with a background and knew he needed to reach out for guidance. Motivated by his desire to have a career in the STEM field, Sal decided to reach out to H.I.R.E. with the hopes of finding support on his journey.

 

“My first impression of H.I.R.E. was acceptance. [...] Because of my background I felt a lot of shame, but I never felt that way when I spoke to H.I.R.E.” - Sal

 

Once connected with H.I.R.E., Sal felt his challenges fade. H.I.R.E. assisted him with resume building, meaningful programs, and continual support during this process. H.I.R.E. was also able to help Sal’s family by providing them with guidance as they faced confusing challenges with the law and needed community support.

 

"My family and I were very ignorant when it came to law and being able to ask H.I.R.E. for guidance has saved me money and time, overall helping me and my family" - Sal

 

With these new resources, H.I.R.E. was able to help get Sal’s felony expunged from his record and he is now able to focus on his goals for the future. 

 

Sal’s journey was not without its challenges, but with the help of H.I.R.E., he has gained meaningful resources and support to equip him to face his obstacles. Currently, Sal is in college studying Cybersecurity and hoping to work for a private tech company. Sal has still been working and exploring various hobbies such as music, graphic design, art, and photography. 

 

Sal continues to work with H.I.R.E. to make progress toward his future and reach his goal of a meaningful career.

 

"Thanks to H.I.R.E. my felony has been expunged from public record, which makes it easier to get jobs to start my career, and takes away that stress of having to carry that boulder around". - Sal