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.
CODY AIRHART
Sat, Mar 14th, 2026
2026 Graduation Banquet
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
My name is Cody Ishmael. I am 24 years old and from the Jonesboro, Arkansas area. I have 4 younger sisters and a 4-year-old son. Growing up, I lived with my memaw because both of my parents suffered from addiction. She always took me to church and made sure I read my Bible. I was very sheltered and hated the very thought of drugs and alcohol. When I was a teenager, my dad came home from Federal prison and moved schools. My addiction started off mainly because I was just trying to...
OCTOBER 2019- Cody Ishmael
My name is Clair Florence. I am 58 years old. I was born and raised on a farm in central Illinois. I was raised in the church and received Jesus at the age of 9, but as time went on, I didn’t act as if I was saved. I have always had issues with self-esteem, shame, and guilt. I began drinking in high school and by the time I was in college, I was experimenting with all kinds of drugs. I got married in 1979 and a few years later we had two wonderful children, a boy, and a girl. ...
OCTOBER 2016- Clair Florence
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...
JUSTIN FINLEY- August 2024
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
My name is Hasson Abuharba. I’m 29 years old. I was born in East St. Louis, Illinois. I have 8 brothers of which I am the middle child. We grew up in a household where in the earliest memories, mom would leave for weeks at a time to get high. The hard times were when we would try to chase her down from crack house to crack house. Being that little all we wanted was mom, but then things got good for a while, and mom stayed clean for some years. But then she got a divorce, and everything got...
JUNE 2023- Hasson Abuharba
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...
JULY 2019- Jessie Crank
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 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 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...
FEBRUARY 2022- Katie Pitts
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 ...
MIKE SHEPHERD- September 2024
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...
FEBUARY 2020- Trey Hollins
Hello, my name is Derrick Mitchell. I’m 39 years old from Dexter, Missouri. I was raised by my mother, Joan. She worked most of the time to provide me and my sisters with everything we needed and with the things we wanted. I was a really busy kid and I remember thinking that you needed money to get anywhere in life. My grandma used to take me to church, but the only thing I really remember is the play where the Roman soldiers beat up Jesus. I was never taught to rely on...
JANUARY 2018- Derrick Mitchell
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 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
My name is Paige Weiss. I am 24 years old from Farmington, MO. Growing up, I had rejection and abandonment issues, this led to depression
and anxiety. After I graduated high school, I started experimenting with drugs, but they soon overtook my life. I got into a serious car accident
and miraculously walked away with only a scratch. After the accident, I realized how deadly the situation could have been. This scared me into
sobriety for 6 months, but it’s not really about...
PAIGE WEISS- November 2024
My name is Brian Nix. I am 45 years old and was raised in Birmingham,...
JUNE 2021- Brian Nix
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 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...
JANUARY 2017- Melissa Jones
My name is Stewart Kerr. I am 24 years old from Muncie, Indiana. I grew up in a good home with good parents, two older sisters, and two younger brothers. We grew up going to a church where my parents were very involved, as I got older, they stopped forcing me to go and I started to stray away. Then I got into sports and got busy, and I stopped going to church completely. When I was 15, I began drinking with my friends and a year later I began to smoke weed. I smoked weed for a few years and...
APRIL 2019- Stewart Kerr
My name is Katlyn Juergensmeyer. I’m 27 years old from Troy, Missouri. I grew up with 2 amazing parents and 3 siblings. Growing up life was good. I never needed for anything in my life, or so I thought. I soon realized that I needed Jesus. At age 16 I went on a mission trip and accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I was on fire for God and went to church every time I could. All through High school I struggled to find out who I was. That soon brought on depression,anxiety and...
APRIL 2020- Katlyn Juergensmeyer
My name is Bradley Wince. I am 35 years old, from Paragould, AR. I had a fair childhood. When I was in the first grade people made fun of me because I had a patch on my eye because a pit bull bit me in the eye and my eye had to be put back in. I was never the same after that. A month before I graduated high school I lost my dad and 4 of my close friends. I was supposed to be with my friends that night, but I got sick and didn’t go out with them. They were partying and drinking and...
NOVEMBER 2015- Bradley Wince
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...
FEBUARY 2019- Tanner Mc.Cormick
My name is Jordan Long and I am 26 years old. I’m from Trumann, AR. I was raised by my grandparents since I was 5 months old.My parents were on drugs and didn’t want to raise me and haven’t ever really been a significant part of my life. I made fairly good grades in school. When I was 14 my grandpa died from emphazema and throat cancer and it really hurt me and changed my life and my grandmother’s life but I have always hid my emotions. In 2008 two weeks before I graduated...
AUGUST 2016- Jordan Long
My name is Whitney Burnette. I am 29 years old from Wynne,...
JANUARY 2022- Whitney Burnette
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...
SEPTEMBER 2023- Misty Davidson
My name is Russell Bishop, I am 54 years old from Highlandville, Missouri. My father was a Baptist preacher and our lives were centered around God. I was saved when I was 18. I attended a Bible college for 4 years and married my high school sweetheart, Sharon. Our intention was to serve the Lord in whatever avenue He would lead us, which we did for a while. Going to church seemed to just become an obligation. Having a drink on the weekend was not uncommon, but at the time I could take...
MARCH 2020- Russell Bishop
My name is Joseph Owens. I’m 27 years old. I was a drug addict most of my life. I was born in Paragould, Arkansas. I can remember times before I tried meth, but I never remember a time when it wasn’t in my life. My parents were both addicts and dealers. In the 2nd grade I woke up early one morning and decided to try coffee, but I didn’t know it had been made with filters from cooking dope. My dad decided to keep me home from school that day. I have always thought drugs...
JULY 2016- Joseph Owens
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 Tori Carter, and I am 32 years old. I was raised between Poplar Bluff, MO and Jonesboro, AR. I grew up in a Christian home, so the love of God was not new to me. I had a good relationship with Jesus, until several years ago when my faith was tested. I lost my brother to suicide. I thought this was the hardest thing that I would ever experience, until I lost my 3-month-old baby boy to SIDS, only two weeks after I buried my brother. I was already using alcohol to
numb the pain and...
TORI CARTER- November 2025
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 Dezirae Starcher. I’m 27 years old, I’m from Akron, OH. I...
MARCH 2018- Dezirae Starcher
My name is Kent Anderson. I am the youngest of 3 boys from a loving stay at home mother and a hard working father. Wanting to fit in to what the world called popular was my downfall. I wanted to do all the things other kids did who had material things. I was spoiled and didn’t even know it because others had more material things than I had but they didn’t have a father who took them fishing and hunting or a mother who spent time working in the yard or catching butterflies or going...
MARCH 2016- Kent Anderson
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 Van Blain McCoy. I am 38 years old and the youngest of 3 boys. I’m from the small town of Corinth, MS. I grew up like most country kids, going to school during the week, working with my grandpa after school, and church with grandma on Sundays. I was always driven by money, no matter where I was or what I was doing money was always at the forefront of my mind. After I graduated, I moved to Kansas to work then came back and started a family. I went to church but, never had a...
BLAIN MCCOY-April 2026
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 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 Amy Shook. I’m 41 years old from Booneville, MS. I could go into my testimony and share all of life’s disappointments, rejections and events that led me to where I am today, but I will fast forward past the broken home as a child, being messed with sexually as a young girl, feeling abandoned from split parents and failed marriages. Those are real life issues that the enemy used to lie to me and tell me I would never amount to anything and deserved all of life’s...
SEPTEMBER 2016- Amy Shook
My name is Treyton Hartle. I am 22 years old from Bloomfield, MO and this is how Jesus turned my life around. On April 1st, 1998 I was born into a great family with loving parents who knew the Lord. Following that was a life in church that was never appreciated like it should have been. At 12 years old I gave my life to the Christ at church camp…then came high school. The work was easy. I wasn’t good enough to play college sports, and I found out I loved having...
APRIL 2021- Treyton Hartle
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 Tim Lacey. I am 63 years old, from a small town in Southeast Missouri. In my late fifties, decades of drinking had taken its toll on me. I found myself
morally and spiritually bankrupt. I was alone and hopeless. I had been in several rehabs over the years, that taught me that I was an alcoholic, and I would always
be an alcoholic. I came to a critical point in my life, after my mom’s passing and I knew something had to change. A close friend told me about Freedom...
TIM LACY- May 2024
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
My name is Courtney Freer. I am 29 years old from Piggott, Arkansas. Growing up, I had a good childhood with 2 siblings, and we were raised by a single mother. My mom tried to make sure that we always had everything we needed. I was raised up going to church, but I just never developed that personal relationship with Jesus that I needed. I started smoking pot in the 6th grade and continued until I was 17 years old. I
used to dream about going to college and making something of my life...
SEPTEMBER 2020- Courtney Freer