Prior to arriving at The Salvation Army in Tyler I was hopeless. I had been charged with check fraud and was on meth and estranged from my family and God. I was living on the streets of Dallas, strung out with nowhere to go and no one I could call. My dad, who had also gone through the Reconnect program, turned his life around. So, I knew, or at least I hoped, it would change mine. I arrived here and was accepted into Reconnect and started listening. I didn’t always like what I was told, but I figured out that if God was going to use this place and the people here, then I had to do what was asked of me. And God started using the people here to kelp me, and do for me what I couldn’t do for myself. I am extremely grateful to The Salvation Army in Tyler for providing me with time, people, and resources that I needed for changing my life. Words can’t really describe just how thankful I really am.

Derrick R.

I was born into a family of alcoholics. My mom and dad both drank. I remember waking up in the middle of the night and hearing mom and dad arguing. I would wake up the next morning seeing mom with black eyes and bruises.
Mom and dad divorced when I was in the second grade. I remember so clearly mom picking me up from school with black eyes and bruises on her neck where dad had chocked her. Mom and dad both remarried and of course my stepdad and my stepmom both drank.
My first taste of alcohol was around my 21st birthday. At first I would drink for a while and be able to stop for months and even years at a time. About 8 years ago my drinking progressively got worse. I would drink on my days off (we called those whisky Wednesdays because that was my day off work) then I would drink on weekends. My mom passed away almost four years ago and my drinking went way out of control. In July 2011 I got my one and only DWI on my way to work. I called my boss and lied and told her I was going to jail over unpaid traffic tickets. When I got to jail my boss was on the phone with the jailers and found out the real reason I went to jail. The next day when I bonded out my bass was waiting to help me go get my car. She told me that if I hadn’t bonded out she was going to come up with the money to bail me out. You would think that would have woke me up, but it didn’t. Two weeks later I showed up at work smelling like whiskey. I lost my job. The lights, water and phone got shut off. I was losing my mom’s house to back taxes. Every dime I could come up with was going on alcohol. I was consuming a liter to a half gallon of whiskey a day.
In December 2011 me and my husband got into a huge fight. My daughter called the law and my husband was taken to jail and me and my daughter went to a women’s shelter. CPS was called in and it was suggested that I get help with my alcoholism. I ended up in Kaufman, TX in a rehab called The Genesis Center. I wasn’t exactly happy there. Finally, after five weeks I was kicked out of there. I thought I could make it with only five weeks in rehab. But I couldn’t. About one hour after I thumbed a ride home. I was going crazy looking my next drink. I went to everybody I knew trying to get a ride to the liquor store. Nobody would help. They didn’t want to see me drink myself to death, which was what I was wanting to do.
The next day I was sitting on my front porch lost, depressed, and angry because I wanted a drink and couldn’t get it but I also knew that I really needed to find another rehab to get into. A good friend of mine showed up and we started talking. She asked me what I was going to do and I told her I didn’t know but that I knew I needed help with my alcoholism. She told me that if I was serious about needing and wanting the help she would go home and start doing research on finding some help for me. Within a couple of hours she was back at my house and told me to be ready to leave the next day. My husband showed up later that evening with a liter of whisky. I told him of my plans and he was shocked and relieved. On Saturday, February 4, I was dropped of here at The Salvation Army. Now, when I got here, I didn’t know anything about Reconnect. I was just dropped off for the work program. I knew the work program wouldn’t be enough. I heard people talking about Reconnect. When I was finally told what Reconnect was, I knew right then and there that was what I needed.
On February 8, 2012 I was accepted into the Reconnect Ministries. This was the best day of my life. Thanks to God, The Salvation Army, Reconnect, Cheryl & Trevesia, I have been sober for almost 14 months. I have a relationship with God and my family.

Kimberly G.