The Impacts Of Family

At 13 years old, things changed for junior Sevion Nichols, and it resulted in him ending up living in a home with someone he barely knew.

 On Aug. 10, 2005, Nichols was born in Atlanta, Georgia. He lived in his home with his mother and two older brothers, with a younger brother coming later in his life, before moving to Liberty, Missouri, at the age of 3.

 “I felt my family life was the most stable during this time,” Nichols said. “I enjoyed living there a lot since it was close to a lot of parks.”

That stability lasted 10 years until family turmoil left Nichols living with his aunt while his brothers went to other relatives.  

“Through all of this, I love my mom, and I know she loves me and my siblings through everything,” Nichols said. “She hid all of the bad things in our life so we wouldn’t notice it, and I never had anything against her.”  

Though it was difficult moving, he was grateful for living with his aunt and his older cousin. Living there, it was more peaceful after moving out of a toxic environment, and he gained valuable lessons from his older cousin Kyyiren. He said Kyyiren helped him learn how to treat others and modeled a hard-working mindset and taking care of  mental and physical health.   

“He is one of the most influential people in my life, and he helped me get my life and mindset where it needed to be,” Nichols said. 

When he first moved in with his aunt, he barely knew her but he got closer to her by watching old shows she would watch, playing board games and going to her doctors’ appointments with her. 

“I only knew my aunt before from family gatherings, funerals and stuff like that,” Nichols said. “It was a big change to move in with her, but I’m glad it happened.”  

That stability lasted a few years until his aunt died of pancreatic cancer. Then Nichols ended up in foster care with two of his brothers. 

“I really like living there and being a part of the family,” Nichols said. 

He started his freshman year while living with his foster family, Steve and Abby Dresser and their children, Hannah and Ben. Now a junior, he said he has learned from the family.

“They helped me remember what I wanted to be like when I was younger and shaped me into the person I wanted to be,” Nichols said.

Through all the hardships with moving several times and not being able to maintain relationships with people he used to know and starting all over again every time he moved, he believed it made him a better person. The Dressers helped him shape up, learn from mistakes, make good choices and watch what he says about others. 

“Don’t be afraid of change because it could turn out for the better and give you advantages some other people don’t have,” Nichols said. “Never let it change you as a person in a negative way.”