My name is Weston Moon.  I’m 30 years old and I’m from Trumann, Arkansas.  My mom and dad  were  great parents, but  their  marriage got taken over by Satan, drugs and lies and they got divorced when I was just 6 years old. I started playing sports when I  was  5  years old and that seemed to keep me busy and out of trouble for a long time.   Not knowing at the time that these years would be the   best  years of my life and not seeing that the road up ahead was paved with...

My name is Michael Steward.  I was raised in California by an amazing single mother, Kathy Dixon who is married to an amazing  Christian husband, Richard Dixon.  I had everything I needed as a child and most of what I wanted.  My life was really good until I started smoking pot my senior year of high school.  I went off to college and kept smoking pot instead of fulfilling my responsibilities.   I soon found myself transporting drugs from California to the school I was “sort of”...

My name is Dezirae Starcher.  I’m 27 years old, I’m from Akron, OH.  I...

My name is Bobby Bean.  I was born and raised in Southern Illinois by a great mom and dad.  When I was 8 years old, my mother led me to the Lord, and I asked Him to come into my heart.  It wasn’t long after that when I started drinking and doing drugs.  I felt like I had to have just about anything and everything in order to make it through a day.  I was hopeless and paralyzed by fear without drugs helping me to numb these feelings of insecurity.  I started trying to get help through...

Hi, my name is Robbie Ingram.  I’m 31 years old and I’m from Dexter, Missouri.  I was born in South St. Louis, but when I was 3 years old, my dad went to prison and my parents got divorced.  My mom decided to move me and my 3 sisters and 2 brothers to Dexter and be near my grandparents.  My mom worked a lot to support all of us, but her heart was always with us.  I can remember going to church as a child. I loved learning about Jesus and singing the kid's songs, but what I liked...

My name is Nina Lee Beal.  I’m 36 years old.  I am a proud mother of one son, Caden.  My life has been a tough one to live.  My family was torn apart at the age of 14 when I lost my mother who had been sick most of my childhood.  Her death triggered a downward spiral that began with partying on the weekends and escalated into being a full blown meth addict.  Along with the drugs came a dependency on  people and  relationships trying to fill  a void in my life that I now know, can...

My name is Jerrod Hollis.  I’m 37 years old from Jonesboro, Arkansas.  I grew up with a fear of failure.  I always felt the need to be “perfect” and have carried that my whole life.  I thank God that now I understand that we all fall short, and Jesus loves us anyway.  When I was 14 years old, I started using pain pills to help these feelings of failure.  The pills made me not feel any emotion and I just became numb to the whole world.  They helped me not feel or care about...

My name is Sean Tolbert, and I am from Jonesboro, Arkansas. I have lived there most of my life, which started in 1974. My story is about a long journey of seeking contentment. I
wasn’t unhappy, but I have always felt unsatisfied, and I spent my life trying to fill a void I didn’t understand. I went to college hoping that education and a good job would satisfy me,
this was not the case. I tried traveling or roaming as well, and as it turned out being a...

My name is Skylar Matheney.  I am 35 years old.  I  am from Piggott, Arkansas.  I am a single parent of a 13 year old son,  his  name  is Devon.  He is the light of my life and beside’s God, the source of my strength.  I started off on drugs at the age of 14, mainly  drinking and then that turned into marijuana. I was introduced to meth at the age of 16  and  started on  my  downward spiral.  The last few years were terrible.  I was terrible in a lot of ways.  I  was...

Hi, my name is Justin Finley and I am 33 years old. I was raised by my grandparents, which is a decision my mother made due to her addiction. I was raised in church and taught right from wrong. Whenever I visited my mother, I would get molested by her boyfriend. This led to anger and depression. I was bullied to the point where I had to change schools. I started to hang out with the wrong crowd, they accepted me with open arms. They introduced me to witchcraft at the age of 13 and by the age...

Hello, my name is Dezirae Russell. I call Missouri home, but I’m originally from Akron, OH. I came to Freedom House when I was 27 years old, I am now 34. I
spent my life looking for something or someone to fill the void I felt inside. I listened to the lies from the enemy that I was depressed, rejected, had PTSD, and
needed psych meds to fix all my problems, this only made things worse. By the time I was 20 I was introduced to opiates, which temporarily eased my pain.
However, in...

    Hello, my name is Omar Mitchell, and I am from St. Charles, Missouri.  I grew up and in a very loving but strict household.  My parents were great to us but volatile to each other.  I grew up seeing them argue a lot and it really affected me.  I was full of joy on the outside, but anger on the inside.  I started stealing things because I wanted attention.  It started with candy and escalated to joy rides in stolen cars.  By the time I was 20 years old, I had 6 felonies.  I spent...

My name is Courtney Shipley. I am 28 years old. I was born in Southern California to loving parents and grew up in church. Since I grew up in a good home and never struggled with drugs, I really didn’t think I had a testimony for a long time. Yes, my life felt lonely and empty, but I had no idea why.  I was married to my high school sweetheart, we owned a home, we both drove brand new cars, and we both had respectable jobs that paid well.  On the outside, my life lacked nothing. Yet, week...

      My name is Whitney Burnette.  I am 29 years old from Wynne,...

Hello I am Kimberly Townsend (Kimmy). I am 54 years old and was born in St. Louis, Missouri. I am a proud mom of 2 very special men, Mathew Alan Trudell age 36 years old and his oldest brother(who is now with the Lord) Mack Andrew Trudell Jr.(1985-2004). Alcoholism and addiction have been a big part of my life since birth. My parents were both alcoholics and although I was never physically abused by either of them, my childhood consisted of watching them constantly verbally and physically...

My name is Melissa Jones.  I am 46 years old.  My life has never been what some call “normal”.  My dad was in prison until  I was around 12  years old.  Then when he  came home,  he was a  drug dealer  which  was   my introduction to cocaine, meth, marijuana and even the needle.  By the time I was 15, I was injecting cocaine and meth daily and had dropped out of school.  My dad ended up back in prison which left me with my mom who basically could not control me.  I ran...

My name is Bradley D. Boyer.  I am 48 years old and was born in St. Louis, MO where I stayed until I was 5 years old and we moved to Bakersfield, CA.  I pray that the Lord gets the glory in this testimony and that it reaches and touches the person it is intended to.  When my family moved to California, it was all a crazy lifestyle.  My father let me drink and smoke pot with him.  One day I mentioned that to his boss and I began to get beat by my father.  My dad also beat my mother and...

My name is Steven Kuykendall, and I am the oldest of 2 children. I was born 6 weeks prematurely and had pneumonia. My parents got divorced when I was
seven, they both quickly remarried. My mother’s husband was abusive to me from the first time I met him, this led to me hating him. I spent weekends back
and forth between my grandparents and my mother’s. As a young child, I wanted to be an MLB player, when I was a freshman in high school, I tried out, and
was on the team...

Hi, my name is Michael Skiles, and I am 34 years old. I was born in St. Louis Missouri. I was raised in a good, hard-working family. We went to church every Sunday. When I was 14, at church camp, I started to feel the conviction of sin and got saved. A few weeks later, I believed I wasn’t saved and started going out with friends and experimenting with alcohol. It wasn’t long before partying on the weekends turned into an everyday thing. I went...

My name is Ryan Burhans. I am 40 years old. I was born in Wisconsin. When I was around fifteen my parents got divorced and I was left alone
a lot and I felt rejected. That’s when my drinking started. I moved out when I was sixteen and had my first child. The drinking got worse because
it numbed the pain of rejection that I felt. I have had many jobs and two marriages that ended due to my drinking. All these years of drinking, I
only had one accident. I know it was because...

Hello everyone, I am so honored to be sharing my testimony. My name is Carrie Mitchell, and I am 48 years old. I arrived at Freedom House two years ago on December 23 and boy has it been a journey. I didn’t wake up one day and say I was tired of living the life I was living. I woke up one day completely exhausted from years of drug addiction and alcoholism. Then I met Jesus! The road after I met Jesus has been one of tears, laughter, frustrations, joy, peace, anger, jealousy and lots and...

My name is Tonya Leigott.  I am 29 years old, from Trumann, Arkansas.  I came from a very dysfunctional home.  When I was younger, my parents were in a mess, along with my Aunt and Uncle, it was just kind of a family thing…When I was about 8 years old; my parents let my grandparents adopt me.  My grandparents tried to give me everything that my parents couldn’t, which in turn made me spoiled and emotionally unbalanced.  My best friend died leaving my 18th birthday party after a night...

My name is Cameron Collins. I’m 28 years old and I was born and raised in Mount Ida, AR. I have a brother that’s 2 years older than me and                            parents that got divorced when I was 4. I really don’t have many memories of them together. Both of my parents got remarried and my brother and I                          stayed with our aunt and uncle as well as my grandmother. I was raised in church until I was about 14. At the age of 14 I...

My name is Matthew Kittrell. I am 28 years old from Marston, Missouri. I lived in an abusive household until I was nine. My uncle
would beat on me, my mom and my sister every day. He even made me watch as he beat my father to death. My mom took me
and my sister and we got out and got our own house. My mom began selling my sister to support her drug habit, so only a year
later, we were put in foster care. By the age of 10, I was drinking, smoking pot and running the streets. I...

My name is Jamie Black.  I’m 38 years old.  I grew up in a small town, Russellville, Alabama.  I had a good life with a very loving mother that was always there for me and worked really hard to provide for me.  When I was 4 years old, my father took his own life as a result of drug use, so I never really had a dad in my life.  My mother has 3 brothers and they were the ones who really raised me to be a man.  Like I said I had a good life, always played sports in school but never...

My name is Ian Miller.  I am 39 years old from Taft, California.  I was born to a very good family and brought up in a very loving and somewhat sheltered environment.  My family is a very multi-racial melting pot, so I was raised to love and accept others.  I was raised Catholic and had my first Holy communion with people I am still friends with to this day.  I knew God from a very young age and walked with Him to the best of my ability and understanding until about the 7th grade, when I...

My name is Gina Fugate, I am 48 years old from St. Louis, MO. I realized that I needed to make a change sitting under a bridge, after a tornado left parts of St. Louis destroyed. A couple of years prior I was laid off from work and faced with a breakup, repossession, and foreclosure which left me homeless and once again addicted. I was at a point in my life where I needed help and quick. I have 4 children, and I was always involved in their lives; it is strange how things can change overnight...

My name is Jessie Crank. I am 35 years old from Blytheville, Arkansas.  I am the mother of 3 beautiful girls ages 16, 15 and 12.  I grew up in a good home with 2 older sisters.  My parents were married and they both worked to provide a nice home for me and my sisters.  I grew up going to a Baptist church every Wednesday and twice on Sunday.  I got saved by asking Jesus into my heart at the age of 8 but I never had a relationship with Him.  When I was 12 years old, my parents got...

Hello there, my name is Jamie Sickal. I’m 47 years old, I was born in Sikeston, MO but lived in Houston, TX for most of my life. My childhood
was good, except for growing up without a dad. I always wanted a father figure in my life. I got married in my early 20s, and filled that void with
my own family, and being the father I never had. After 16 years of marriage, my wife was unfaithful, which led to her having another man’s child,
and our divorce....

My name is Tanner McCormick.  I’m 22 years old from Kennett, Missouri.  I am the oldest of 3 siblings.  My mother was addicted to pain pills, but she tried the best she could.  She blacked out a lot, so I basically raised my younger brother and sister until I was 11 years old. My mother got a boyfriend and I became very bitter.  When I was 13, I went to live with my father who I had only met once before in my life.  This turned out to be a bad decision.  I started drinking and...

My name is Casey Barker, I am from Jonesboro, AR. I grew up as an only child. My father was verbally abusive, and my mother was strict, so I rebelled as I got
older. When I graduated high school, I moved out to do it my way. I tried everything I could alcohol, drugs, sex, and music, and loved them all. I had an excellent
job, had a cattle farm, built a big house, had a wife and kids, but I was out of control. It took time, but my lifestyle caught up with me....

My name is Krista Bates-Duncan. I am 29 years old and live in Malden, Missouri. As I was growing up I went through many traumatic events that led                         up to my addiction. I lived in fear most of my life and did not have a clue as to what real love felt like. I didn’t understand what the word “love” even                              meant or what love looked like. As a child I was burned by boiling water at the age of three,...

Hello everyone, my name is Carrie Mitchell.  I am 47 years old.  I was born in Memphis, TN but I was raised in New Braunfels, TX.  I had a good childhood with good parents that taught me morals and values and the importance of making good grades.  I listened and did what they told me to do.  When I was 15, I developed a rebellious streak and started drinking.  I also seemed to take the partying just a little further and a little further.  I had many other drugs involved in my...

My name is Jerrel Gillentine and I was born in 1978.  When I was born, my father started seeking after God and made sure that I was going to church.  I received Jesus into my heart when I was 7 years old. I now know that even though I was making bad choices, He was with me and He was protecting me. My dad owned a body shop, so, as early as second grade I can remember going there after school to sweep the floors and clean up.  Then I would go home to do my chores there. I have 10 siblings.�...

My name is Danny Washburn.  I am 50 years old and was born in Joplin, Missouri.  I had what I felt like was a pretty good childhood besides the fact that up until I was 12 years old, I saw my dad get drunk and beat up my mom.  I have 2 older brothers and they beat up on me like brothers do.  When I was very young, I learned to play pool which opened the door to a lifestyle of gambling, even if I was only playing with lunch money.  When I turned 18, I joined the Navy.  This really opened...

Hi, my name is Chrisy Ginn. I am 50 years old and from St. Louis, Missouri. I was very depressed at a young age.  I remember crying every day at school and feeling very despondent.  This feeling has lasted most of my life – BUT GOD!  I began to self-medicate in high school and this continued until the time I came to Freedom House.  When I was 42 years old, I added methamphetamines to the “medication” and my life spiraled out of control.  I found myself homeless and broke and felt...

Hi, my name is Nathan Dell.  I am 26 years old and I am no longer a methamphetamine addict!  I spent the last 4 to 6 years of my life using drugs and hanging out with the wrong groups of people.  During that time, I turned away from Jesus  and  lost sight of who I was.  I found myself alone and broken; for the first time in my life, I was afraid that  I  may  not  make it to see tomorrow.  I realized that I needed help because I no longer even knew who I was.  I found freedom in �...

My name is Mike Shepherd. I’m 64 years old and from St. Louis, MO. As a kid I knew exactly what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wanted to be a professional
soccer player, and I played a lot. When I got to high school I got hurt and my dream ended. I had difficultly handling this and resented the other guys who got to
play. I felt “less than” because I wasn’t playing, but my grades remained good. I started drinking when I was a junior. This took away any shyness or social ...

My name is Kenna Chenoa Cashion. I am…a child of God. I could tell you about how I was married with kids or how I was teased as a kid, how my family was poor and broken or even how I was abused but all of these things are so small but necessary parts of my life. See I am now a 34-year-old divorced mother of 3 whom after being married and without a husband and home of my own, struggling to become a single parent lost my way, myself, my children and my life. No, I didn’t die physically but...

My name is Trey Hollins.  I’m 24 years old rom Poplar Bluff, Missouri.  I had a good childhood.  I was raised by a single parent, my mom.  My dad came around from time to time, but he had 8 other kids and I always felt like he just didn’t have time for me, his oldest son.  I started working when I was 16 years old.  I complained about it until one day my mom told me that there was a time that she had to pick up trash just to provide for me and my sister.  Hearing that changed my...

 My name is Katie Pitts. I am 32 years old from Kennett, MO. I had a good childhood never wanting for anything. My mother took me to church every time the doors were open. I was saved at a young age and had relations with Jesus but not a relationship. Growing up, I suffered from depression, anxiety, and rejection issues, In my later teenage years, I discovered alcohol and liked the way it made me feel, In reality, I ended up in bondage and it made the things I was experiencing worse, I used...

Hello, I’m Misty Davidson. I’m 46 years old and from Moberly, Missouri. I grew up in a Christian home-Baptist. I was saved at the age of 9 but it seemed like at an early age, fear, torment, and anxiety set in and I doubted my salvation and my self-worth. I grew up in a very prideful and strifeful home. My Christian roots
go deep on my dad’s side. A lot of pastors and deacons of the church, but my momma’s side of the family wanted nothing to do with the Lord. A lot of...

My name is Robert Jones.  I am 36 years old from Jackson, MS.  My life has been hard from the very start.  I was born with a hole in my heart and 2 ruptured hernias in my abdomen; I am told that during this time, I contracted scarlet fever.  I was a very sick baby.  I survived this only to be abandoned by my father at age 2, and I was physically and sexually assaulted by someone close to me until age 8.  My mother  re-married during this time to a man who would adopt me, but again I...

My name is Shannon Wayne Kender and I am 41 year old from Joneseboro, AR.  I’m no stranger to God’s love, grace and mercy.  This is my 3rd season in Mission Teens and each time He brought me out of my mess was nothing short of a miracle.  I have the best parents anyone could ever ask for they taught me to know right from wrong and shown love and discipline equally. I was saved when I was 12 or 13 years old and even though I know He genuinely came into my heart, I only asked Him so that...

   My name is Brian Nix.  I am 45 years old and was raised in Birmingham,...

My name is Nichole Haywood.  I was born in Kennett, Missouri and at the age of 3, my mother moved me and my older brother to Ohio.  This move took me away from my father, but I was blessed with a loving stepdad that took me in like his own.  He was the father I needed in my life.  My brother was older than me and was always getting into trouble.  I always felt like my mother loved him more than she did me.  He began raping me when we moved to Ohio.  This went on until I was 8 years old...

My name is Patrick Cook.  I am 40 years old and from St. Louis, Missouri.  I was raised by parents who did well but were alcoholics.  Growing up, I always felt different and had very few friends.  I also had a hard time fitting in anywhere because I was a very sick kid and couldn’t participate in what “normal kids” do which led to me feeling left out and very alone.  Growing up, I always said that I would never smoke, drink or do drugs and I didn’t until I went to college. That�...

Hello!  My name is Marvin Hembree; I am 40 years old and was born and raised in a small town called Clinton, Tennessee.  I am the oldest of 4 boys.  I grew up in an amazing home with two very loving parents who are still together to this day. The 4 of us boys were raised in church our whole lives and came to know God from a very young age.  I always excelled in academics in school, up until my teenage years when I began to experiment with drugs.  I have always been of a very small...

My name is Jody Thompson, and I am a 42-year-old mom to 3 amazing kids. I was raised in church and got saved and baptized when I was young. There was
a lot of love in my family, but there was pain as well. My dad was an alcoholic which caused turmoil in our home. As I got older, there were more and more
“excuses” not to go to church. I started experiencing anxiety, depression and tension headaches and was prescribed psych and pain meds as a cure. This was
the beginning...

My name is Marissa Lesley.  I am 43 years old from Dexter, Missouri.  I have been on and off drugs since I was 12 years old.  I never really      felt like I fit in anywhere and I’ve always struggled with low self-esteem issues.  I came from a good family.  My parents divorced when I was      young, but they were both good and loving parents.  Neither one of my parents ever had addiction problems. I started hanging out with the      wrong crowd in school and that was my...

My name is Claude Essary, and I was born on July 27, 1977, in Bartow, FL. My mother was mentally ill, and my father was an alcoholic and a gambler, this made for a rough childhood. As I grew up, I had a lot of hate and anger from my upbringing that affected every part of my life. I just wanted to love people so much, because I didn’t want anyone to feel the way I felt inside. In November of last year, I was in jail for the fifteenth time; I was at a point in my life that I had never seen...

My name is Nathan Jones. I was born July 10th, 1988, in Cape Girardeau, MO. I was the youngest of 3 boys. I was raised catholic but didn’t have a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. At an early age, I started smoking weed and taking pills. I dropped out of school and started partying full time. My addiction got worse and progressed into harder drugs like meth and heroin. This ruled my life for a long time. I was in and out of jails, mental institutions, and hospitals....

My name is Katelyn Walker. I am 22 years old. I am from Belden, Mississippi. I had a little bit of a rough start growing up. From the time I was born I was exposed to drugs. My biological mother was an addict and so was all of her immediate family.  The earliest memory that I have of my mom is when the police had busted my mom and her, at the time husband, for cooking meth in mine and my little sisters’ room. That is also when we were taken away from her, from there we went into the foster...

My name is Matthew Montgomery.  I am from Springfield, Missouri. I was raised by my father and stepmother in a healthy, supportive home. In my early teenage years, I was always seeking attention and looking for acceptance from others. I started experimenting with drugs and alcohol. In the party crowd, I finally felt like I was accepted. I went to college, but eventually got kicked out. Then I had to move back to my parents.  I felt very lost, rejected, and confused about my future. I...