A year ago John and Tabbi were living in a car near Union Mission’s Crossroads shelter and trying to survive one of the coldest winters on record. Although they never thought they would be graduating from Union Mission’s Addiction Recovery Program, it is exactly what they did on January 10, 2019. Graduation was even more special to John as he met his youngest son for the first time.

John: My dad left before I was born and I grew up with a very abusive mom. My childhood was horrible and I was placed in foster care at age 14.

Tabbi: My dad was in the army and I grew up moving around. My mom and dad split and I ended up feeling lost in all of it.

John: That’s what brought us together. The attention we both needed and I am thankful for it. We met when we were 16, and we’ve been together for 12 years. That’s when our story together began.

We moved to West Virginia six years ago. Last year was rock bottom for us. The drugs were plentiful and we were addicted. It was a very cold winter and we survived because of Crossroads. We stayed in our car, but we didn’t have gas to run it for heat. We both had warrants and were on the run. We were trying to figure out how to live through this and not lose each other or die.

Tabbi: There were a few times I remember sleeping on John’s lap because it was so cold. We slept in triple sleeping bags. I remember waking up in the morning and there was ice on the inside of our car from our breaths.

John: We would go to Crossroads to eat and hear the preaching. I remember crying inside because I wanted to change, but I didn’t see any hope. We eventually went to jail on different sides
of the state. I was court ordered to Union Mission’s Addiction Recovery Program in April and Tabbi came in May.

It was rough at first. I had a lot of issues from my childhood and I thought that all authority was bad. I was very skeptical, and I wanted to know if this God thing was worth it or a waste of my time. As I read book after book, I realized I am here for a reason. I found that I couldn’t doubt God and this was worth a try. Everything I knew as a man I had to let go of. Ultimately I completely surrendered. I gave up everything and things began to change.

Tabbi: Everyone has been so kind to us here. I wasn’t use to living with a bunch of girls and it was tough being separated from John. When I started focusing on the Lord and stopped worrying about the other stuff, things began to change for me.

John: The classes were the key. If we didn’t have the classes, I would still be joking around and trying to get away with stuff. I learned that Jesus does exists and God exists. The future is amazing and I am excited. My goal is to go to Word of Life Bible Institute in the fall. I don’t want to quench my thirst for studying. I want to learn as much as I can and be solid in my faith.

Tabbi: This place has been so good to us. I have hope now and after graduation, I plan to continue at Union Mission as an intern for the program.

John: I want to tell people to give God a try. If you have any doubt, just give Him a try. If you want to say you don’t believe it, try it anyway. He will show himself to you if you ask Him to. For Tabbi and me, things don’t end at graduation. It only begins and that’s what we’re excited about!