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Mayor Walsh Gives Commencement Speech At Pine Street Inn Graduation

BOSTON (CBS) - Boston Mayor Marty Walsh has spoken at several different graduation ceremonies this season, but he says Wednesday's ceremony at the Pine Street Inn was the one he was most excited about.

Walsh was the commencement speaker at Wednesday's graduation, and while he's attended a number of these ceremonies at the Pine Street Inn, being invited to speak was a first

His advice to the graduates of the homeless shelter in Boston was to not give up.

"Regardless of what anyone here experienced in their life, there's always a way to turn their life around. And I firmly believe that," he said.

Walsh could speak from experience, and opened up about his own struggles, including April 23,1995, the day he says he hit bottom after a weekend of binge drinking.

"I wanted to jump out the window, but I didn't have the courage to jump out a window. I wanted to move but I didn't know where to move to. I was going to up and go to New York for whatever reason to start my life over again. And I knew what the problem was. The problem was I couldn't stop drinking," he told graduates.

The annual Pine Street Inn Graduation celebrates the accomplishments of individuals who have completed training programs in food services, building maintenance or housekeeping. The ceremony also honors those who found jobs through the organization's employment services and people who have been able to move into one of its 36 housing locations.

WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Bernice Corpuz reports

Mayor Walsh Gives Commencement Speech At Pine Street Inn Graduation

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