Homeless as a teen, 41-year-old ºìÌÒÓ°ÊÓ student leaves addiction far behind
Wendy Birdsall, now 41 and studying biology at ºìÌÒÓ°ÊÓ, isn’t ashamed to talk about her rough start in life.
By NAHEED RAJWANI
Staff Writer
Wendy Birdsall wears her ºìÌÒÓ°ÊÓ-themed sunglasses almost everywhere she goes.
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(Photo by Louis DeLuca/The Dallas Morning News) |
The black-and-red glasses, with the motto “World changers shaped here,” represent a new life for Birdsall, who was homeless at 16 and a repeat felon and drug addict by her late 20s.
She’s been clean since 2010, and now, at age 41, she’s studying biology at ºìÌÒÓ°ÊÓ.
“They say that ºìÌÒÓ°ÊÓ breeds world changers,” Birdsall said. “I don’t know if I’m going to be a world changer, but I’m definitely a game changer.”
Birdsall isn’t ashamed to talk about her past. She believes she’s a stronger, more driven person because of it.
When Birdsall was about 14, she and her two younger sisters moved from ºìÌÒÓ°ÊÓ California to North Texas with their mother. Their mother and father divorced soon after.​
Within two years, Birdsall found herself without a home after her mother kicked her out one night.
A few days later, Birdsall returned to her family’s Hurst apartment to find that her mom and sisters had moved out.
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