18 Nov “Without Wheeler Mission, I would have missed my blessing.”
Johnny began using drugs and alcohol when he was just 19. His habit escalated over the years, costing him jobs and landing him a three-year prison term for drug and burglary charges. “You wouldn’t have wanted to be around me in those days,” he says.
Then Johnny’s wife was diagnosed with kidney failure and he left his job to take care of her for several years. “I didn’t want her to go to a nursing home,” he says. “After she passed, I lost my house, so I came to Wheeler Mission.”
Johnny wanted more than a place to stay, however, so he entered our STEPS Program, designed to move men and women forward toward economic and personal stability. “I wanted to rehabilitate my life,” he says.
Johnny has done just that – growing strong in his relationship with the Lord, maintaining his sobriety, and healing from the depression caused by losing his wife.
Johnny graduated from the program and now works on our staff, mentoring men who are where he once was. “I tell them you have to have God in your life, and be around spiritual people.”
Johnny plans to get his own place, continue working at the Mission, and “just do God’s will.”
“I never imagined life could be anything like this. It’s beautiful,” he says. “Without Wheeler Mission, I would have missed my blessing.”
To read the most recent issue of Inside Story, click to download.
Help other people like Johnny…
Johnny’s story of hope and healing is inspiring. Our long-term recovery programs exist to help other men and women in central Indiana find healing. Will you help provide this help to others?