Photograph and video courtesy of West Virginia University Reed College of Media Fall 2019 and Spring 2020 Multimedia Storytelling students

Big Steps and New Life

Ariel Hill grew up in West Virginia, and she was in and out of juvenile detention centers beginning at age 13. She served time at South Central Regional Jail in 2017 and was sentenced to Lakin Correctional Facility in 2018 for battery and arson.

Hill struggled with childhood trauma and addiction, but after being released in 2019, she wanted a different life. She found her way to Infinite Pathways, a group recovery home sponsored by the Partnership of African American Churches in Charleston, West Virginia.

“I honestly didn’t think that I...would know how to function with people...From who I was into who I am now - it’s a pretty big step for me,” Hill said.

She is now an employee at a local market while she completes her G.E.D. courses and works toward a higher education.