Thread by @jakequery

Today, #20TriumphsIn20Days features Leslie, 29. While her story is ultimately of triumph, it involves a share of heart ache. I’ve done a dozen of these features thus far, & I’ll admit: While impartiality is always a priority, I find myself pulling the hardest for Leslie. Thread👇

The heart ache. We’ll begin there. For Leslie, it was a few years ago. The chest pains. The shortness of breath. It seemed unusual for a woman in her 20s. But, was it? That heart had been through so much, you see.
Start with the bullying. It was there as far back as she can

remember. Why? Because she had different interests? “My passions- like dinosaurs or sharks were deeper than most”, she tells me, a permanent shark inked on her left arm.
Because she talked a little bit different? Maybe that was the autism?
Perhaps it was the isolation. “I was

never a total outcast, I just didn’t hang out with people”, she recalls.
Or maybe it was just heart break. Her father, after all, had passed away in 2015, one of the last things they discussed was his fear Leslie would end up in a group home.
Just about any would justify a

heavy heart. But, a faulty one? That’s what Leslie learned she had- a cardioverter defibrillator eventually placed to regulate her pulse.
But, what’s regular anyways? For Leslie- life has been about finding her own ordinary. What a journey it’s been.
It took her out of her

native Merrillville in 2016. 6 years removed from High School, Leslie was seeing a psychologist for depression- that bullying was tough to shake, ya know? During her sessions, her counselor introduced her to a new program in Muncie for people with disabilities- @ErskineGreen.

Leslie was part of EGTI’s inaugural graduating class. It was a life changer. For the first time, that heart knew what being warm felt like. “No one looked at me like I was a freak”, says Leslie, who joined EGTI at the age of 24. “I realized I’m not the only one and there are

some people worse off than me. There were so many times in my life I was worried. I was scared my Dad was right. That I’d end up in a group home. I saw it was possible, not to prove him wrong as much as prove him proud.”
Pride. It’s what defines Leslie. I see it in her home. On

the walls, in her decor. The things that make her proud. There are pictures of her EGTI class, her certificates, and photos of Indianapolis. Books on Indianapolis. Her passion for Indianapolis- it’s deeper than most. Like Leslie, I share a heart on the mend, which we discussed,

and I share a heart for Indianapolis. She tells me of her joys in exploring her new hometown- the Red Line making it possible for her to spend her days off from her job in food services at @butleru venturing the circle and the downtown museums. She tells me of her growth at her

job- she started wiping tables and has moved up to becoming a server- and of her dream to someday land a job- any job- at @IndianaMuseum. “They have a cafe”, she tells me. “I’d do anything there. Just to be a part of it in any way.”
As she is professing her love for the Museum, I

notice her book collection on the history of Indianapolis. She tells me about Bill Hudnut and unigov and the evolution of her city. Leslie does it with an undeniable love and passion for her city. Our city. Pride. She has it deeper than most.
She tells me she is most fascinated

by Indianapolis of the 70s and 80s because it was “simpler times.”
It’s fitting, because, after a life of complexities, Leslie has found her simplicity- in her life in Indianapolis. It’s not to say it’s perfect. Like all of us, Leslie is a work in progress. One that just wants to

be like all of us.
“The bullying? I’ve made peace with that. I heard everyone. They called me ‘Carrie’. Said I’d burn the school down. I never wanted that. I just wanted to move on with my life. I wanted to succeed. I wanted to say I can do my own things. Life is simple. I get

lonely, but I’m making friends. I’m proud of my independence. I have goals. I want to save enough money to get a certificate in museum studies. I want to work for @IndianaMuseum doing anything. Just to be around it.”
Leslie’s HIgh School class recently had a 10 year reunion.

She thought about going, but opted instead to watch the TV celebration of the Indianapolis bicentennial. She’s so proud of her city. As am I.
You know what makes me really proud? Leslie has rooted here. Because we need people like her.

Passion. Pride.

A reciprocated pride.

Leslie’s doors were opened and her confidence blossomed after she went tbrough the first class at EGTI. If you’d like to learn more about EGTI or help others like Leslie, you may do so here:

erskinegreeninstitute.org