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. ...

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...

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...

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

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...

Hi there! My name is Susan Flanagan. I am a 42 year old mother of 3 boys and I was born in Blytheville, Arkansas.  My father left when I was 2 years old, so my mother raised me and my brother and sister by herself.  We were very poor. I remember that my mom moved us around a lot because she was an          alcoholic and we went through several “stepdads.”  Because my mom wasn’t very responsible, I felt the need to become more responsible.  I was just a little girl and I was...

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...

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...

My name is Stephanie Ballard.  I am 25 years old and was born in Paragould, Arkansas.  Growing up I did not have what most children had growing up.  I was born into addiction and with that I witnessed more than I should have.  My mother got shot in the neck over a drug deal gone wrong.  I was only 3 years old and I was in the back seat sleeping.  I watched my parents do everything in front of me and I felt a sense of responsibility to keep them safe.  I started doing drugs at the age...

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...

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...

    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 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 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...

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...

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...

My name is Trace Cohn.  I’m 30 years old and grew up in Jonesboro, Arkansas.  I grew up in church and had a great family and wanted for nothing.  I got introduced to drugs and alcohol and my childhood innocence quickly turned to despair.  Everything that could go wrong did.  I ended up getting kicked out of school in the 8th grade and had to go to jail because of marijuana. You would have thought that jail would have scared me enough to straighten up, but it didn’t.  When I got out,...

My name is Mike Shepherd, I am 60 years old from St. Louis, MO. In grade school I absolutely knew what I wanted to do with my life and that was to play soccer.  I loved it and was good at it.  When I got into high school, I got hurt playing football and my soccer dream was gone.  This threw me for a loop, and I had trouble dealing with it emotionally.  I was resentful toward the other players, not a member of the party crowd, shy with the girls and I felt like I did not fit in anywhere....

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...

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...

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 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...

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 Brittany Marie Brewer.  I am 34 years old from St. Louis, Missouri.  My mother worked really hard to raise me and my sister.  I was in beauty pageants and dance classes.  All of that changed in my early teenage years when my father introduced me to methamphetamines. This landed me in and out of several rehabs over the years.  In 2008, I found myself in an extremely abusive relationship.  One day in 2014, we were both high, arguing and driving down the road at 90 mph.  I...

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 Kenna Cashion.  I am 32 years old.  I was raised by a stay-at-home mom and a truck driver dad.  I was always called a “miracle” baby. I was the first child of their marriage and came later in their lives. We always thought our family looked a little like the Brady bunch.  My mom had 4 children from a previous marriage and so did my dad. Being a “miracle” baby, they had given me to the Lord in their hearts before I was even born. The enemy has always been out to get me...

        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. ...

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

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

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 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...

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...

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 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 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...

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...

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 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...

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...

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...

My name is Darline Pehle. I’m 26 years old. I am the oldest of 5 siblings but because of my size, I qualify as the runt. I was very abused as a child. I went to church growing up, but in high school I started to rebel against my family and the Lord. During my rebellion, I denied my belief in Christ. I was doing all sorts of bad things and then I was with my grandma when we got the call that my mom had died in her jail cell. Instead of looking to the Lord for strength, I rebelled even harder...

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...

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...

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...

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....

My name is Hunter Willis.  I grew up in Harrison, Arkansas but now I live close to Springfield, Missouri.  I’m 27 years old and have fought drug and alcohol abuse since I was 16.  Growing up was perfect.  My family and I trained horses and rodeoed.  We went to church every Sunday and I was active in the youth groups.  My family was very close.  My dad worked and my mom stayed at home with me and my brothers.  She say’s she would ask my brother where I was, and he’d usually say...

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...

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 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...

My name is Jordon Daniel Rogers.  I am 26 years old, and I am from Puxico, Missouri.  My parents got divorced when I was young, and it really affected me.  They both got remarried, but it was still never the same.  I put all the hurt deep inside and turned to drugs instead of dealing with it.  By the time I turned 18, I was an active meth user.  The devil had me right where he wanted me.  I lost family relationships and burnt every bridge I came across. I got “clean” for a while,...

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...