His life hasn't been easy.  A middle child living in a single-parent home, Steven had several brushes with the law, was hanging with the wrong crowd and, as he puts it, "I had an attitude."

After spending 30 days in the Juvenile Detention Center, he got a second chance.

As part of his probation, Steven was enrolled in the Second Chance Program through the Tucson Urban League.  It's a court-ordered program to reform old behavior and learn new pro-social skills.  The philosophy of the program is that every choice has a consequence, whether it be positive or negative, and that everyone has a choice.

Steven was not delighted to have to go through the six-month program.  At first, he wasn't interested in finding out the reason he ended up in detention.  But what he thought was psycho-babble, nonetheless, started sinking in.  "They helped with my attitude and how I should act," Steven says about the program.  "It helped me out in a big way and got me back on my feet."

He took the skills he learned through Second Chance and applied them to life.  Now, Steven Cota has a job at eegee's, something he is proud of.  For someone who was never really interested in school, Steven is working hard to achieve his General Equivalency Diploma.

His life is heading on the right path, but Steven knows the anguish he put his family through.  He says the most affected was his 14-year-old sister, Stephanie.  As an older brother, Steven knows he was supposed to be looking out for her and making sure she made the right decisions in life.

He remembers all too clearly his sister sobbing near the police car the night he was taken away.  Although he can't take back the past, he can make his future brighter and that's just what Steven is doing now.  "I would like to be a role model and for her to learn from my mistakes," he says confidently.  He is unsure what the future holds, but knows the Second Chance Program through the Tucson Urban League helped him get focused and headed in the right direction.  "I learn something new each day," Steven says optimistically.  "So, I take it day by day and see what happens."

Adapted from Tucson Lifestyle
December 1998
Portrait Photos by David Fox