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Travis VanHorn knows firsthand what it’s like to live in the shadows. The 27-year-old struggled with addiction from the age of 15 and was in and out of jail for nearly a decade. After being kicked out of school in 10th grade for having drugs on campus, the Connelly Springs native transferred to Halllyburton Academy, an alternative school, where he was discharged again after just a semester, having gotten into a fight with another student.

VanHorn attributes his teenage addiction struggles to “too much free time and no hobbies” and hanging out with the wrong crowd. “In the environment I was in, everybody was either on probation for fighting, had been to prison, or had been the victim of a violent crime,” he said.

As a teen and young adult, VanHorn worked in factories and in construction, where he built commercial glass fronts for buildings. When filling out job applications, VanHorn admits that he always checked the “yes” box next to High School Diploma. He said this practice helped him land jobs, but also left him feeling guilty.

“I am honest to a fault, so I always felt bad,” he said. “I always wanted my GED.”

VanHorn’s struggles with addiction continued for a decade. Then, in November 2023, his life took a drastic turn. He was arrested and, as part of his sentence, had to do a long-term residential treatment program at First at Blue Ridge, Inc. in Ridgecrest, NC. The program changed his life. Along with group and individual counseling, he learned how to take care of his mental health. Gradually, the shadows lifted, and he began to feel more like himself.

“The program brought me back to my roots,” he said. “Before rehab, my life was a dead-end road that led only to prison and death. It was a miserable cycle of physical and mental abuse that was not living at all, but only surviving.”

Blue Ridge has a partnership with 99������Ƶ, and during his stint, VanHorn met Derek Soto, one of 99������Ƶ’s transitional studies instructors who also teaches there. Thanks to Soto’s encouragement, VanHorn came to 99������Ƶ’s campus to take the placement test for 99������Ƶ’s High School Equivalency program in January 2024. He scored surprisingly high, but had deficits in math. “I had always done alright in school,” he said. “I got good grades.”

VanHorn said the staff at 99������Ƶ, including Soto and Transitional Studies coordinator Karen Neal, encouraged him to study for his GED™. For three months, he worked weekly at Blue Ridge with Soto to fine-tune his math skills. The hard work paid off with VanHorn earning his High School Equivalency certificate and participating in 99������Ƶ’s 2025 High School Equivalency graduation.

After VanHorn completed the year-long rehab program, Blue Ridge offered him a full-time job. Five months later, he is working there as a House Manager and in Peer Support, where he helps manage the 100 program residents, answering phones and connecting them with 12-step meetings in the community. VanHorn said that he would not have been able to get certified as a Peer Support Counselor without his GED™.

At Blue Ridge, the student feels he’s found more than just a job, but a second family. Working with the residents and being there for them fills a void that he’d previously tried to fill in unhealthy ways. “I felt lonely between ages 15 and now,” he said. “It was me by myself lots of times. I like to be there for (the residents), so they know they’re not alone.”

Now that he’s got his High School Equivalency diploma, VanHorn can fill out job applications with confidence and a clean conscience. But, he said, he’s in no hurry. “I’m not ready yet to go back into the world. I’m still working on myself,” he said. “One day I might go back to construction, but right now I’m happy where I’m at.”

Learn more about 99������Ƶ’s High School Equivalency program.