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When carpenter Hael Morales-Torres’ first paycheck arrived, she knew it wasn’t really hers.

Emerging as she is from homelessness, domestic violence聽and addiction, she is indebted to many people. So聽on that first聽payday, she聽wrote聽a check聽for聽$150 to Housing Solutions, one of聽the nonprofits that helped her get where she is today.

鈥淚 can’t even express how I feel,鈥� she said last week in the job shack聽of a multifamily development聽rising near Gresham. 鈥淚’ve gotten so much encouragement, so much love.

鈥淭hey’ve helped remind me who I am.鈥�

It wasn’t long ago that Morales-Torres was living in her car with her three聽kids. She didn’t have a high school diploma, or any real job training. Her checkered history included meth addiction, incarceration and gang life. She had spent聽10聽months聽in inpatient addiction recovery, and three years away from her children聽as the result of聽government involvement.

Today, Morales-Torres, 36, works聽as a carpenter and rents an apartment. She loves what she does and is intent聽on paying back those who have helped her. She would like to one day own a house.

鈥淚 thank God for聽these聽programs,鈥� she said.

Fridays can feel a little looser around a job site, and last week Morales-Torres joked about her old nickname. It’s聽written on the front of her hard hat 鈥撀爐he initials 鈥淛T.鈥� They once stood for 鈥淛ust Trouble,鈥� she disclosed with a big聽laugh.

Morales-Torres聽is evidently popular with her co-workers at Acacia Construction Services, including her boss, superintendent Rocky Munoz. He said she’s one of the best apprentices he’s worked with.

鈥淪he’s great,鈥� he said. 鈥淪he’s proactive, she’s always on time, she responds to feedback really well. She’s phenomenal.鈥�

For the past four months, Acacia has been installing roofing, siding and windows at聽this affordable housing project聽on Northeast Couch Street. By chance, it’s a project by Housing Solutions, the group that first got Morales-Torres and聽her kids and one grandchild into affordable housing.

Now that she’s back on her聽feet, she would also like to write donation聽checks to聽other groups that have helped her, like Volunteers of America聽and Oregon Tradeswomen Inc. It was OTI that gave her entry into the trades. The nonprofit offers pre-apprenticeship training and other programs for women. But before聽Morales-Torres could attend OTI career classes, she had to get her GED.

鈥淪he’s just done so well,鈥� OTI construction instructor Amy James Neel said. 鈥淚t’s been amazing to watch.鈥�

Though聽initially interested in welding,聽Morales-Torres聽gravitated toward聽becoming a聽jack-of-all-trades carpenter 鈥� a better fit for her go-go-go, proactive nature, she said.

She graduated from OTI in June on the same day her daughter graduated from high school. OTI helped connect her with Acacia. She remembers the thrill of telling her kids she’d gotten a job.

鈥淭he minute I told them, they hugged me,鈥� she said.

After 30 days, Munoz rewarded聽Morales-Torres’ hustle with a $2-per-hour raise. When she showed interest in learning to operate a man-lift,聽Munoz offered to pay for her certification; he said he’s happy to have another crew member on site who can run a lift. He’s also happy to have another bilingual employee to聽help translate for her predominantly Spanish-speaking co-workers.

After four months,聽Morales-Torres is聽still excited every morning she awakes and聽鈥済ets鈥� to go to work. And she is wiped out when she gets home. Staying fit is聽a big part of the job, she has learned. Her kids 鈥� 19, 11 and 9 鈥� have responded by聽helping prepare dinner and clean around the house.

鈥淚’m tired when I get home, there’s no doubt,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut it’s a good kind of tired.鈥�