Published: Sunday, June 7, 2009
The Class of 2009: Her education gave her purpose
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Michael O'Leary / The Herald
Lake Stevens High School graduating senior Alexis Restad.
LAKE STEVENS -- Her life crumbled to pieces the year Alexis Restad turned 13.
Her grandmother -- her best friend -- died, leaving Alexis and her family without a home.
Alexis' mother, Christine Simpson, moved her son and daughter into an extended-stay hotel.
Simpson lost her job and began, again, using drugs and drinking excessively.
Money ran out. Simpson moved her children into seedier and seedier motels on Broadway in Everett.
Alexis shared a bed with her older brother, while her mom and her mom's boyfriend slept a few feet away.
"It was very hard to go to school every day and not know if I'd have a home to go back to," Alexis said. "My mom drank herself into numbness. I just needed a place where I could go home and do my school work."
Alexis left one day after fighting with her mom's drug dealer. She walked to a pay phone, called 911 and told the dispatcher she didn't feel safe. It was a tough move for a teen who had grown up fearing police.
She was shuttled between several temporary homes before landing at her godmother's house in Granite Falls.
She has flourished.
Alexis is involved in leadership at Lake Stevens High School. She sings in the choir, has held offices in 4-H and played tennis her sophomore year. As a conflict mediator, she helped her classmates sort through disagreements. She'd sometimes catch a bus at 4:30 a.m. in Granite Falls to get to school in time for meetings.
She also works as a cashier at Ace Hardware and attends classes at Everett Community College through the Running Start program. She plans to continue at the college in the fall and eventually transfer to a four-year university to study criminal justice. After spending years thinking laws and police were bad, she wants to work for the FBI.
Throughout high school -- through her many moves and family strife -- she has earned mostly A's and B's.
"I think most of the reason I was able to do this is because I knew if I didn't, I wasn't going to survive," said Alexis, who's now 18. "Education was the most important thing in my life because it was going to get me where I wanted, and get me ahead in life. I always felt school was an escape for me."
Her challenging adolescence gave her problem-solving skills she believes puts her at an advantage over other teens.
And her resilience and willingness to fight for her future have inspired her mom. Simpson now lives in a house with other recovering addicts and says she's been clean for a year. She plans to attend Alexis' graduation on Tuesday.
"We were homeless and it sent me in a spiral and I just gave up, but she didn't," Simpson said. "She was way too strong for that. She won't give up."
More of the Class of 2009:
Cancer hasn't dimmed grad's spirit
Drummer is always upbeat
Handling a balancing act with grace
Science whiz knows just where she belongs: MIT
Part-time senior made the most of his year
Her grandmother -- her best friend -- died, leaving Alexis and her family without a home.
Alexis' mother, Christine Simpson, moved her son and daughter into an extended-stay hotel.
Simpson lost her job and began, again, using drugs and drinking excessively.
Money ran out. Simpson moved her children into seedier and seedier motels on Broadway in Everett.
Alexis shared a bed with her older brother, while her mom and her mom's boyfriend slept a few feet away.
"It was very hard to go to school every day and not know if I'd have a home to go back to," Alexis said. "My mom drank herself into numbness. I just needed a place where I could go home and do my school work."
Alexis left one day after fighting with her mom's drug dealer. She walked to a pay phone, called 911 and told the dispatcher she didn't feel safe. It was a tough move for a teen who had grown up fearing police.
She was shuttled between several temporary homes before landing at her godmother's house in Granite Falls.
She has flourished.
Alexis is involved in leadership at Lake Stevens High School. She sings in the choir, has held offices in 4-H and played tennis her sophomore year. As a conflict mediator, she helped her classmates sort through disagreements. She'd sometimes catch a bus at 4:30 a.m. in Granite Falls to get to school in time for meetings.
She also works as a cashier at Ace Hardware and attends classes at Everett Community College through the Running Start program. She plans to continue at the college in the fall and eventually transfer to a four-year university to study criminal justice. After spending years thinking laws and police were bad, she wants to work for the FBI.
Throughout high school -- through her many moves and family strife -- she has earned mostly A's and B's.
"I think most of the reason I was able to do this is because I knew if I didn't, I wasn't going to survive," said Alexis, who's now 18. "Education was the most important thing in my life because it was going to get me where I wanted, and get me ahead in life. I always felt school was an escape for me."
Her challenging adolescence gave her problem-solving skills she believes puts her at an advantage over other teens.
And her resilience and willingness to fight for her future have inspired her mom. Simpson now lives in a house with other recovering addicts and says she's been clean for a year. She plans to attend Alexis' graduation on Tuesday.
"We were homeless and it sent me in a spiral and I just gave up, but she didn't," Simpson said. "She was way too strong for that. She won't give up."
More of the Class of 2009:
Story tags »
• Lake StevensRelated
- The Class of 2009: Cancer hasn't dimmed grad's spirit 6/7/09
- The Class of 2009: Drummer is always upbeat 6/7/09
- The Class of 2009: Handling a balancing act with grace 6/7/09
- The Class of 2009: Part-time senior made the most of his year 6/7/09
- The Class of 2009: Science whiz knows just where she belongs: MIT 6/7/09
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