Hello

Hello,

 

My name is Andrew Gill, and I am the owner of Helios Mentor Services. I am an honor roll graduate of both Wichita State University and Fort Hays State University, where I earned degrees in Sociology—with a focus on addiction counseling—and Business Administration. Today, I am a business owner, a father, and a Value Stream Leader at one of the country’s leading private aircraft companies.

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I would be doing you a disservice if I pretended my accomplishments came from a perfect foundation. The truth is, my path was anything but easy.

I spent the early years of my life living with my mother, along with my brother and sister. She worked two full-time jobs just to keep the bills paid, and despite everything she sacrificed, I was a stubborn child—rebellious, restless, and difficult to manage. As I got older, my behavior only intensified, and it became increasingly hard for my mom to handle me on her own.

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Eventually, she made the difficult decision to send me to live with my father. She hoped a change of environment might help set me straight, but the reality was far different. My father struggled with drug addiction and spent years cycling in and out of jail. His sobriety came and went, and because of that instability, our utilities did too. There were times when the electricity or gas would be shut off without warning.

I’ll never forget coming home from college one weekend—after selling nearly everything I owned just to afford textbooks—only to find the power shut off again. I remember trying to boil ramen water over a candle. That moment of hunger, frustration, and hopelessness still sits with me today.

My life wasn’t built on comfort or consistency. It was built on surviving chaos, adapting, and pushing forward even when the basics weren’t guaranteed.

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At the age of 22, overwhelmed by poverty and chaos, I had a dangerous thought: if you can’t beat them, join them. That single moment led me down a destructive path, mirroring the same behaviors I witnessed growing up. From ages 22 to 25, I fell deep into drug and alcohol abuse. My life unraveled to the point where I lost all support and eventually found myself homeless. The summer of being 25, I was arrested while walking the streets with nothing but the clothes on my back. That was rock bottom.

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After my release, I made a decision that changed the course of my life forever. I surrendered to a higher power and committed myself to rebuilding both my personal and professional life. I had no other choice—my path was either transformation or death. I also had a child who deserved better than the man I had become. With help from a recovery home, I began putting the pieces of my life back together. A place called Seventh Direction provided structure, support, and hope when I needed it most.

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They allowed me to live in one of their hallway homes long enough to find a job. I spent a month knocking on doors, applying everywhere I could. Eventually, I landed a position at a fast-food restaurant. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was a start. My biggest hurdle wasn’t just the job itself—it was getting up at 4 a.m. every day to catch a bus across town. Slowly, paycheck by paycheck, I saved money, bought clothes, and eventually began contributing to my housing.

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One year later, I was hired directly by Seventh Direction Outpatient Services. I went from being a client to becoming a mentor for youth and adults fighting the same battles I once faced. Helping others gave me purpose. Over six years, I worked my way into a Peer Support role and eventually became the Supervisor and Director of Transportation Services. My passion for helping people pushed me to pursue a college degree in counseling.

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Those years were grueling. I attended school full-time while maintaining two jobs. When someone at work quit, I picked up their shift, working twelve hours a day and often Saturdays. Near the end of my college journey, I had two more children, adding financial pressure that forced me to rethink my long-term career path. While counseling was rewarding, the pay was not enough to support a family of five. That reality led me to seek opportunities in aviation.

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I started in aviation as a debur operator, working on the shop floor while finishing my degree. In 2020, during my last year of school, I entered my practicum. At the same time, I was working 57-hour weeks due to mandatory overtime. I felt like there weren’t enough hours in the day to work, study, complete my practicum, and still rest. I remember thinking the practicum would have been easy if not for everything else I had to manage. Then, unexpectedly, the pandemic hit.

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While the pandemic brought hardship worldwide, it created a silver lining in my life. Our company furloughed employees, but continued paying us as if we were working full-time. This blessing allowed me to complete my practicum, finish my degree, and graduate with honors. That experience strengthened my faith and reinforced my belief that if we take steps forward—even small ones—our higher power will meet us where we stand.

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The discipline and resilience I built during those years permanently changed my mindset. I learned that with faith, determination, and relentless effort, we can exceed the limits we once believed defined us. After graduating, my degree helped me move upward in aviation. I transitioned from a crew lead to a Value Stream Leader.

With years of saving—from starting out with only the clothes on my back—I finally reached a point where I could buy a home.

 

But during the pandemic housing boom, properties were scarce and overpriced. After being outbid multiple times, I realized that if I was going to make such a large investment, it needed to work for me. That’s when I found a duplex for $350,000. Both units were already rented. I bought it, lived in one side, and rented out the other. That purchase became my first major financial step forward.

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I created an LLC and began exploring every way the property could benefit me. I learned that my tenants were essentially paying down my loan, building my equity, and helping me establish a strong financial foundation. With the LLC, I was able to write off taxes, insurance, maintenance—and even my business classes. Yes, the knowledge I gained through my Business Administration degree was paid for in part by my own real estate operations. Knowledge truly is power.

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This opened the door to new opportunities: forming business bank accounts, building credit, and laying the groundwork for a successful real estate venture. Today, I am a supervisor at a multibillion-dollar aircraft company, the owner of a real estate business, a father of three wonderful children, and a man who has rebuilt his life from the ground up.

My journey proves that anyone—no matter how old or how lost they feel—can change their life. I hope my story inspires you to step out of your comfort zone and build the foundation for a bright, beautiful future. Anything is possible once we align our thoughts, our faith, and our actions with progress.
 

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