In 6^th grade Shantel began hanging out with older kids who were involved in gangs. They ditched school and got drunk or stoned. At first she was afraid that her new friends might turn on her, but she was lucky they treated her like a little sister and made sure that nothing happened to her. When she did attend school, she got into fights, and was eventually expelled from middle school for punching a security guard. Denver Social Services placed her in a school for expels and juvenile delinquents, where she was expelled for getting angry and breaking a window. She was scheduled to appear in court facing charges of truancy when she found out she was pregnant.

Chino, the baby’s father is Guatemalan and in the United States on a work permit. He was happy that Shantel was pregnant because it was his first child and told her that he was going to be by her side every day. He hasn’t come around much since he told her that. Shantel plans to tell her child the truth -- that her dad didn’t want the baby. "He’ll be able to see the baby but he can’t take the baby or be alone with the baby."

Because of her pregnancy Shantel took stock of her life: her involvement with drugs and gangs, her relationship with her mother, her education, and the future of her child. "I really think the reason why I got pregnant was because I was really bad into drugs. I think God gave me this baby because I was going to get into something really bad like a drive-by shooting and I probably would’ve got killed or something. So I think there’s a really good purpose for this baby being born."

We'd like to thank Shared Beginnings at St Anthony's Hospital, a mentorship program for pregnant teens and young parents in Denver, Colorado for their help and support for Shantel and Grrlstories.