Welcome to Freedom House!
Freedom House Mission Bible Training Center, a branch of Mission Teens, Inc. is a non-profit, non-denominational organization with a Christ-centered, discipleship program for people who are 18 years or older, who suffer from drug, alcohol or emotional problems.
Freedom House MBTC does not receive any government or denominational funding. We are totally dependent on God to move upon the hearts of people to supply our needs. If you feel led to donate to this ministry, please hit the button below.
If you or someone you know is wanting to change their life and get into the center call 573-371-2020 and ask to speak to the overseer.
Brad Boyer's Graduation
My name is John Van Loan, I am 42 years old and I live in southwest Missouri. I never realized the devastation alcohol would cause in my life when I started drinking at the age of 16. I always just wanted to have fun and party. Little did I know that the alcohol and partying would eventually consume me with sin and shame that was taking me down a road that would kill me, and a road that did destroy my hope in life, along with shattering the hope and dreams of my wife Jana, my daughter...
MAY 2018- John Van Loan
My name is Dezirae Starcher. I’m 27 years old, I’m from Akron, OH. I...
MARCH 2018- Dezirae Starcher
My is James Curry I am 58 years old from St. Louis, and I want to tell the world what Jesus has done for me. I came to Freedom House May 24th, 2025, because of my addiction to all types of drugs. When I graduated the program, I knew I wasn’t supposed to leave, but I made my own plans and went back to St. Louis. I fell flat on my face, the previous 33 years of addiction was nothing compared to the torment I suffered for 4 months until I made it back to Freedom House. The Lord had His hand on...
JAMES CURRY- September 2026
My name is Greg Beaver. I am 37 years old and I have three children. I was born and raised in Kennett, MO. At an early age I was taught to work hard and take pride in my work; so, at 17 I dropped out of high school and went to work in the farming industry. I met the love of my life; we got married and started our life together. I spent the next 14 years working 7 days a week. I was successful in my career, and I loved to enjoy my time with my family. I knew there was a God, but sadly I did...
GREG BEAVER- October 2026
My name is Eric Wood. I am 26 years old from Dexter, Missouri. I’ve always had the feeling that I was going to do something “big” in this life, even though I grew up feeling rejected by my father who was very abusive and controlling because he was addicted to pain medication. I always felt like he treated me different than he treated my 2 older brothers. I never felt loved. My father overdosed and we found him dead in our dining room when I was 15 years old. At the time, I...
JANUARY 2021- Eric Wood
My name is Marenda Bennett. I am 47 years old, from Gideon, MO. I had a drug/alcohol problem for approximately 25 years; however, I had been mostly sober since 2017 with a few relapses here and there, that is not what brought me to Freedom House. What brought me to Freedom House was a lifetime of darkness, not only with drugs and alcohol, but also with promiscuity, demonic worship, and witchcraft that completely consumed me. I had countless mental and emotional issues, not to mention...
MARENDA BENNETT- January 2025
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...
SEAN TOLBERT- March 2025
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...
AUGUST 2020- Ian Miller
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,...
SEPTEMBER 2018- Krista Bates- Duncan
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...
FEBRUARY 2021- Marissa Lesley
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...
DEZIRAE RUSSELL- May 2025
My name is William Weaver I’m 53 years old and from the Chicagoland area of Illinois. I was the middle child with two sisters. As far back as I can remember my dad was very withdrawn. He came from an alcoholic lifestyle and because of this we rarely spent any quality time together. He stopped drinking when I was in my 30’s and we were able to spend more time together. My mom and I had a very difficult relationship. We were close when I was young, but her mental illness and depression took...
BILL WEAVER- November 2026
My name is Bo Sandefur and I am 23 years old. I’m from a small town in the hills of Kentucky called Horse Branch. I grew up in a good family. We always went to church, until I was 11 years old. At that time I fell out of a tree stand and I injured my back and was prescribed pain pills. That’s where my addiction began. In a very short time I learned how to synthesize methamphetamine and how to steal the ingredients for it, and I learned how to make moonshine and grow marijuana. I quit...
NOVEMBER 2018- Bo Sandefur
My name is Greg Prater. I am 62 years old, from Jonesboro, AR. I can’t tell you the age when I took my first drink, I just did it because that’s what I saw my
father do. Since I was 16 years old, I have been an alcoholic, and it has caused one problem after another. By the time I called one of the other mission
teens centers in 2009, I was completely broken and miserable. I lost my job, my marriage of 13 years, and was about to lose my house. I didn’t see a future
ahead of me....
GREG PRATER- July 2025
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...
APRIL 2018- Robbie Ingram
My name is Brian Nix. I am 45 years old and was raised in Birmingham,...
JUNE 2021- Brian Nix
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...
JANUARY 2019- Cameron Collins
My name is Jacob Barnes. I was born in 1997 in Jackson, Tennessee. When I was young, my parents moved us to Kennett, Missouri because my father was from there. My parents were young, and my dad couldn’t handle the pressure, so he drank and used drugs and hung out with the wrong people, often leaving me and my mom and sisters to fend for ourselves. Eventually, my parents split up and my mom ended up moving all of us in with her boyfriend in a nice house. This didn’t last long...
DECEMBER 2020- Jacob Barnes
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...
NOVEMBER 2020- Courtney Shipley
Garrison Bowen, I am 27 years old and from Hinesville, GA. I realized I needed to change my way of living when I just lost my job and had no money because of all the drugs and alcohol. It was consuming my life. Over the past 5 years, I have been in and out of Christian programs and lost many jobs due to my anger or other actions. After the last program, I thought I had it all figured out. However, I was still drinking, smoking weed and trying to help my brother who was also in a mess. Living...
GARRISON BOWEN-February 2026
My name is Whitney Burnette. I am 29 years old from Wynne,...
JANUARY 2022- Whitney Burnette
My name is Jason Freeman. I was born In Poplar Bluff, Missouri in 1982 and I was raised in Dexter, Missouri. I have an older sister and an adopted brother and sister. My childhood was what I would consider normal. I went to a Baptist church and I played all sports but was especially good at baseball. When I was 13, I stopped going to church and started experimenting with drugs and alcohol. In no time, I got in trouble for bringing drugs to school. I got put on probation and...
DECEMBER 2019- Jason Freeman
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...
GINA FUGATE - January 2026
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...
APRIL 2022- Nichole Haywood
My name is Stacy Jane Bannon. I am 45 years old. I am a native Texan. I came from a broken home and an extremely dysfunctional childhood. As difficult as it was, I know my parents did the best they could. I came to know the Lord and Jesus at a very young age, attending vacation Bible school, regular church services, and church youth camps. However, I began at a very young age feeling lonely, empty and confused seeking out anything to change the way I felt. I went to my first...
MARCH 2017- Stacy Jane Bannon
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...
CARRIE MITCHELL- January 2024
My name is Earl Gyger and I’m 42 years old from Forsyth, MO. My childhood was great, but at the age of 14, I was introduced to “crank”, which is now known as crystal methamphetamine. That choice I made back then led to an emotional roller coaster of bad relationships and a very dark and ugly lifestyle. I stopped using meth for a short time and got married. She had a 2-year-old daughter and...
AUGUST 2018- Earl Gyger
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...
DECEMBER 2023- Kenna Cashion
My name is Jeanette Page, and I am 20 years old. I was born and raised in Bloomfield, MO. I went to church my entire life. I played sports in high school trying to fit in, but I never felt accepted. In 2022 I lost my grandpa and even though I knew it was best he was no longer suffering; I was angry with God. In 2023 I lost my childhood best friend, and again I blamed God. In August 2025, I realized I need to fix my relationship with the Lord. I called a friend and her, and my Pastor helped me...
JEANETTE PAGE- June 2026
My name is Kandy Riggs. I am 49 years old from Sebree, Kentucky. I am the 8th of 10 children. When I was growing up, my father was an abusive alcoholic who shot at and stabbed us kids. I have been married for 30 years and we have 2 children and 2 grandchildren. I didn’t have my last child until I was 35 years old and I had to have several surgeries as a result. The surgeries resulted in pain medications which I became addicted to. I would stop for periods of time, but I...
JULY 2018- Kandy Riggs
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 with...
STEVEN KUYKENDALL- December 2024
My name is James McNulty. I was born and raised in Longmont, Colorado until I was 17 years old and then I moved to Florida. I started using drugs when I was 13, but I managed to get really good grades and I graduated high school when I was 17. I went to college, but I didn’t finish and get a degree. I was “managing” my drug use until I was 22 and then I really went off the deep end or jumped over the cliff, whichever way you want to say it, I was a mess. ...
JANUARY 2016- James McNulty
My name is Michelle Weeks. I am 37 years old and from Hayti, MO. I was blessed with a Christian grandma who took me to church and taught me right from wrong. My mother, however, was the one who introduced me to drugs when I was only 13 years old. As I got older, I continued down the wrong path. I got married when I was at 19 to a man who was very verbally, mentally, and physically abusive. I left him and he stalked me and tried to kill me. This dove me deeper into addiction. In 2015, I was...
MICHELLE WEEKS- July 2024
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...
MAY 2017- Nina Lee Beal
My name is Kayla Kristin Binns. I am 32 years old. I was raised in Jonesboro, Arkansas in a Christian household. My parents loved me unconditionally and took very good care of me. My parents knew that keeping me involved in activities would keep me out of trouble, so I was very active in softball, clogging and church. My younger brother and I are best friends. We were totally inseparable when we were growing up and we both ended up taking a wrong...
DECEMBER 2017- Kayla Binns
My name is Kerry Maurer. I am 41 years old and was raised in South St. Louis, MO. My mother was only 16 when she had me and my father abused her. They partied and they fought all the time. They separated when I was 5 years old. When they separated, my mom drugs me from boyfriend to boyfriend and husband to husband. When it didn’t work out, we would go back to live with relatives. I changed schools more times than I could count and lacked the stability that I needed growing up....
JULY 2022- Kerry Maurer
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...
AUGUST 2017- Weston Moon
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....
DECEMBER 2015- Jerrel Gillentine
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...
FEBUARY 2018- Shannon Kender
My name is Morgan Schmidt. I’m 25 years old and I was born in Tupelo, MS. I have a beautiful, 4 year old little girl named Khloe Beth. I grew up in a split home due to divorce. I lived with my mom, but she had a problem and seemed to choose her addiction over being a other most of the time. My dad wanted the best for me and felt like he could be a better parent so they ended up fighting over me. I can remember how DHS would come to check on me...
JUNE 2017- Morgan Schmidt
Hi, I’m Shane Schiller. I was born in 1975, and I am from Missouri. When I was born, my dad left. This was the source
of a lot of pain in my life. I turned to drugs and alcohol at an early age to numb the pain I felt. 1 Peter 5:7 says, “Be
sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”
I wasn’t sober or vigilant for many years. I have been on psych meds for as long as I can remember. I developed a
SHANE SCHILLER- February 2025
My name is Jessi Kamper. I’m 29 years old and I am a current resident of Kennett, MO. I grew up in a very loving household. I have an older sister and 2 older brothers. My parents always showed us lots of love growing up and they are still married. I grew up in church and my parents would have us there every time the doors were open. When I was thirteen years old, I prayed the prayer, walked the aisle at church, and gave my heart to Jesus. But really, nothing about my life...
SEMPTEMBER 2021- Jessi Kamper
My name is Laura Burroughs. I am 40 years old. I was born and raised in Jonesboro, AR. I enjoyed a happy childhood. Although I never met my biological father, my stepdad adopted me when I was two years old. When I was fifteen, he committed suicide which sent me down a dark path. I started seeking approval and affirmation through men. I never felt like I had any worth and I always tried to fit into the crowd. I knew the way I was living was wrong, so shame and guilt set in. I tried to numb my...
LAURA BURROUGHS-March 2026
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...
AUGUST 2022- Chrisy Ginn
Hi, My name is Billy Starnes. I’m 43 years old and was born in Tupelo, Mississippi. I was raised by alcoholic parents who would get very angry when they drank. When I was 13 years old, I found marijuana as an escape. This small compromise changed the course of my entire life. By the time I was 17, I had quit school, got a job and was addicted to meth. My job took me all over the United State building mini storage buildings. I was also addicted to the money I was making. The more...
NOVEMBER 2022- Billy Starnes
My name is Terry Lynn Jackson. I am 48 years old and was born on a farm in a small town in Illinois. I was the youngest of 8 siblings, so I always got hand me downs and never had anything of my own that was new, so when I was only 5 years old, I started stealing candy from the store. This behavior grew and by the time I was 14, I was a full- blown alcoholic and breaking into homes. I got in so much trouble by the time I was 17, I got arrested and sent to prison for 4 years. In...
JUNE 2018- Terry Lynn Jackson
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....
MAY 2023- Nathan Jones
My name is Brandon Lee Norman. I was born in Missouri in 1994. My mother was an alcoholic and had several abusive boyfriends when I was growing up. She loved me the best she could. I ended up getting put into foster care. My mom passed away when I was 12 years old. I didn’t know how to cope so I began stealing, smoking and drinking. I went to juvenile detention and when I got out, I had the opportunity to go to college for construction engineering technology. I ended up dropping out...
MARCH 2023- Brandon Normann
My name is Jason Motter. I am 46 years old and I am from Millville, New Jersey. I had a pretty normal childhood. I am the middle child of divorced parents and we were all raised by my father. I played a lot of sports growing up like baseball and football. When I was 13, I got into a fight at school and got hurt. I was prescribed painkillers and that opened a door that would take a very long time to close. I took pain medication and chased that high for years until one day in...
NOVEMBER 2019- Jason Motter
My name is Kimberly Tomlinson. I was born and raised in Pocahontas, Tennessee. The Lord blessed me with a great family that taught me about Jesus at a young age. I received salvation when I was young and even though I took the wrong path for a while, I know that Jesus was with me keeping me safe the entire time. In high school, I started hanging out with what I thought were the “cool kids”. I can remember just riding around and getting drunk and high with them. ...
JUNE 2022- Kimberly Tomlinson
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...
RYAN BURHANS- February 2024
JULY 2020- Chasity Zimmerman
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...
CLAUDE ESSARY- October 2024
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...
MAY 2020- Patrick Cook
My name is Rodney Walker. I’m 42 years old and I am from Mississippi. I had a rough childhood because my parents were always fighting, so I spent a great deal of time with my grandparents. My grandma took me to church where I was exposed to the truth but also a lot of “religion”. I was saved at the age of 11 but wasn’t properly discipled. I used my involvement in sports to be a release of all the negative emotions I was trying to bottle up inside. I listened to so many lies...
AUGUST 2019- Rodney Walker