"The Mission welcomed me in and gave me a second chance."

December 15, 2022

A Testimony of Redemption & Restoration

Hi, my name is Peter Holland. I was born and raised in Rhode Island. I was the youngest of five boys in a family in which alcoholism was very prevalent. My own challenges with alcohol began when I was 16 years old, often hanging out with friends and drinking. After I graduated high school, I got married and had two wonderful children. However, my pattern of drinking became more and more prevalent in my everyday life. My wife saw the damage alcohol was doing to me and our family, and she insisted that I get help. I refused, and we ended up getting divorced.


My children did not want to have anything to do with me because of my drinking. I just could not stop no matter how hard I tried. I was now living with my mother, and soon after I lost my job after the business shut down. I spent all of the money from my severance package on drinking and partying. Meanwhile, my alcoholism had taken such a toll on my body that I began to have seizures when I drank. I knew I had a problem, but every time I would attempt to get sober I would relapse after just a few days. My mother told me to leave her home and go get help.


I was given the name of the Mission by a family member, and I decided to give it a chance. I was doing very well in the program, but after five months I decided that I had my life figured out and left. I went back to my mothers and within weeks I relapsed. At this point I had burned all bridges with my family, and I didn’t have anywhere to go. My alcohol induced seizures were beginning to worsen as I drank more and more. One day I woke up in the hospital with a neck brace and a black eye, not remembering that I fell off a porch onto the cement and went unconscious. After I was released from the hospital, I realized I had truly exhausted all options. I was alone in a hotel, weak, sick, and drinking myself to death. I went through all of my money in less than a month.

 

Finally, I woke up one morning and realized that God was giving me all these chances and compelling me to change. I felt the Lord telling me to “Wake up! Wake up! Get back on your feet!” I knew that I should have been dead at that point. I grabbed my phone and the first number I called was the Mission. I asked to rejoin the Men’s Program and they came to pick me up from where I was staying. I was so grateful that they took me in and gave me a second chance! I saw the program through to the end, and I graduated with a new mindset of hope for an amazing future. This time, I knew I wouldn’t make it without a close relationship with the Lord. I am now the Night Shift Resident Supervisor at the Mission, as well as helping to oversee and coordinate the monthly fundraising mailings.

 

I have been at the Mission for four years, and I am so blessed to be in the position I'm in today. I now have a relationship with my daughters. I’m now a grandfather, and I am so thankful that I get to be there for my family. If it wasn’t for the counseling, the classes, and the teachers made available to me at the Mission, there is no way I would be here today. I truly feel so blessed! Thank you!

"I could never have imagined the life that I am living now: 6 years free of addiction and full of hope!"

July 25, 2023
Hi, my name is Jennifer, and my story has been anything but what you would consider easy. Growing up, I faced every form of abuse you could possibly imagine. After a lifetime of being violated and hurt, I decided at the age of 17 that I wanted nothing to do with God at all because if He really loved me, He wouldn’t have put me through all that. I was so angry, and I felt like I could handle life better on my own. After getting married and giving birth to my daughter, I became addicted to the pain pills the doctor gave me while recovering from my c-section. This began many years of chaos and turmoil as my life fell into shambles. I completely lost my relationship with my daughter, McKenzie. All the while the unresolved trauma from my past fed my addiction and I felt like I just couldn’t stop. However, I now see that God saw me in my despair. After surviving human trafficking, overdose, and a lifestyle of destruction I found myself in prison. As soon as I was released, I completed another residential recovery program in Rhode Island. There I learned how much God loved me and for the first time found myself staying clean from harmful substances. However, the Lord was still not done working on me, and my journey was only beginning. Eighteen months into my recovery, I suffered a life-altering injury when I shattered my knee in four places. I was in and out of hospitals, nursing homes, and rehabs for months. I felt depression and darkness overcome me as I couldn’t figure out how I could possibly move on from this. It seemed as though God had abandoned me again. It wasn’t until one Sunday at church when someone gave me the name of Marbeth Carew, the Director of the Women’s Program at the Mission, and said they were hiring. The Lord showed me that he had an amazing purpose for me and opened all the doors for me to take on a position in ministry there. Since coming to the Mission in 2019, I have experienced so much growth in every aspect of my life. I have never felt like just another employee on a list. Sean and Marbeth have invested so much time and energy into my spiritual and emotional growth by encouraging me to seek Christian counseling, walking me through the Genesis Process, and pouring truth and wisdom into my life. They have been with me every step of the way, and I cannot even begin to describe how my relationship with my daughter McKenzie has transformed in the past four years. I was given the space and time to prioritize the restoration of our mother daughter relationship. The Mission has 100% made it possible for that to happen. We now see each other often, talk every single day, and the relationship that we have now feels as though we never lost those years due to my addiction. She now tells me that she looks up to me! Wow! I never thought I would hear her say that. I am so thankful to my leadership for giving me hard truths, lessons, and knowledge to navigate these new phases in my life. I have so much love for Sean, Marbeth, and the Mission. I truly believe that the Lord led me here in a time of deep darkness. I now work as the Development Coordinator at the Mission, overseeing fundraising and planning events. God has provided the means for me to have my own apartment and my own car, something that I never thought would be attainable for me. I could never have imagined this life that I am living now: six years free of addiction, full of hope, and having a true, genuine relationship with my daughter. I want to thank all of you who donate to the Mission to make stories like mine possible. I feel so grateful and blessed! Thank you!

"The Mission has been such a blessing to me and my family!"

April 10, 2023
My name is Kelsey, and I am so blessed to be able to share my story with you. I am a graduate of another recovery program in Rhode Island. When I graduated from that facility, I thought I had dealt with all my past issues and trauma. I soon realized that there was some more struggles I must work through. I became pregnant soon after leaving the program, and I didn’t know where to turn. I had spent a lifetime in dysfunctional and abusive relationships, it was all I knew. Thankfully, God gave me my now fiancé Darnell, who taught me what a healthy relationship can be. After I gave birth to my son, I lost my father in a tragic accident. I was deeply struggling with postpartum depression and didn’t know how to cope with the loss of my dad. While I stayed clean from my previous drugs of choice, I didn’t know how to go on with my life and turned to alcohol. When my children were removed from my care as a result of my drinking, I knew I had to get my life under control. I got sober and turned to my church for support. However, I still lacked the financial resources to fully provide for my children. I regained custody of my kids in December of 2022. I was so excited, but I didn’t have the means to provide Christmas for them. The Mission gave me everything I needed to give my family a great holiday. The best part for me was, that my kids didn’t know any of their gifts came from the Mission, they just knew that Santa came! The Mission has been such a blessing to me and my family. They have provided food and clothing during many times when it was simply hard to make ends meet. To have somewhere to turn when I was at a very low point in my life was honestly a gift from God. To everyone who donates to the Mission, I want to thank you for making a way to help people who are struggling. In a time when everyone is having to make tough financial choices, you are still choosing to help others and I am so grateful. Thank you!
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