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Chernell Bizzell’s first night spent in an old, abandoned yellow-brick house was a reality check.
At 16, she had hit rock bottom. Her addiction to crack-cocaine had her living in squalor among addicts who were 30 years in, eating out of dumpsters and wandering the streets during the day
Yet even in her drug-induced haze, her dream for a better life never dulled.
Today, the 35-year-old readies herself for Dec. 17, 2011, the day she tops the summit. She will receive a bachelor’s degree in African-American Studies from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She plans either to go to law school or get an advanced degree in counseling.