San Diego Reader

"I know firsthand what it's like to be young and without a roof over my head," Jewel told members of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, June 19. She testified at a hearing on "the crisis of youth homelessness, disconnected youth, and youth aging out of foster care."

"I'm blessed that my own story has had such a positive ending," she told the subcommittee. "But the same cannot be said for the over one million kids out there on the streets who are at risk and have no voice in society."

Jewel says she ran away from home at 15 and lived in a van while playing San Diego coffeehouses.

"I can't tell you how many times I was propositioned [to be a prostitute]," she said on camera while on Capitol Hill.