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WILMINGTON – A Wilmington woman who once felt the grips of homelessness donned a cap and gown Friday night.

Lorie Pacheco said it's hard for her to believe a few years ago she was on the streets, working minimum wage jobs and struggling to make ends meet.

"Rent, I mean you can barely pay rent with $200 a week, let alone a car payment, groceries, your utilities," said Pacheco.

Pacheco said she realized she needed an education to get ahead. Through a federal grant and scholarships, she enrolled in the paralegal program at Cape Fear Community College.

"When I came here, I had a bag with a T-shirt and a pair of underwear in it," she described. "That's all I had to my name."

Pacheco's hard work paid off. Not only did she earn her diploma, she also scored a career. She's now working as a paralegal at a law firm.

"There's been miracles in my life in the last two years. I have friends, I never had friends," she reflected.

Pacheco moved out of the transitional women's home at First Fruit Ministries this summer, but her success has inspired others still living there to start new chapters in their lives. Five women even decided to enroll in college themselves.

"To see her succeed is to not really walk in her path but to know that you can do what she's done," said Terri Stone, who was inspired to enroll in Cape Fear Community College and would like to become a nurse.

"She worked really, really hard. And you know, I can work hard too because I've seen that hard work [equals] results," said Donna Venezia, the resident adviser at First Fruit Ministries.

In the fall, Pacheco will attend UNC Pembroke to earn her bachelor's degree in nonprofit administration. She plans to use her education to help other homeless people.

"I told a lot of people when I lived out on the streets that if somebody ever helped me, I was going to come back and help them too and I made that promise and I'm going to keep that promise," said Pacheco.

Pacheco is also getting married this weekend in a ceremony at Kure Beach.