Kevin spent most of his life searching for a fresh start.
“My mother wasn’t in my life. My father wasn’t in my life… By the time I turned six, my grandmother watched me till about the age of 11.” His mother returned briefly, but after that, he spent most of his time on the streets. “I was on my own since I was 14 years old,” he says.
By then, Kevin had already started drinking and using drugs. “The stealing and the robbing… I thought it was okay. That’s how I got high.” His life became a cycle of addiction, missed opportunities, and broken relationships. “The sad part was, I always wanted to be a better person. But I didn’t know how to stop that addiction.”
For years, he tried to turn his life around, but nothing stuck. “Everywhere I went, I just messed up…I thought the streets was going to teach me a lesson, but no, I never learned that lesson there.”
Then, a friend took him to church. The world inside felt completely different from what he knew. “It was clean. They had nice suits and fur coats.” While he worried about fitting in, the congregation welcomed him with open arms. “When I told them my story and all I’ve been through, they was there for me. Even in the midst of my mess.”
That’s where Kevin met Jesus for the first time. But even with faith, leaving his past behind wasn’t easy. “Once I started believing in God, some things changed, but I still had that demon on my back.”
Then, in late 2023, a friend suggested Water Street Mission. This time, something felt different. “I said, ‘Okay, God. Imma trust you. Imma go to this Mission.’”
Now, more than four months into the residential program, Kevin is thriving. “I don’t have the desire to use. I don’t think about getting high. I think about—I have an opportunity of a lifetime.”
He’s connected to a church, completing daily tasks, helping others, and embracing the resources available to him. “They give you counseling… they teach you life skills… If you allow yourself to grow and wanna change, every opportunity you have is there.” More than the services, it’s the people who have made the biggest difference. “They show love like I’ve never seen in a shelter.”
Kevin is looking ahead with hope, not regret. He’s reconnected with his family, including his children and grandchildren. Through financial classes at Water Street, he’s learning how to save and build a future.
In the end, Kevin sums it up best: “I’m grateful and I thank y’all for donating, because this is what happens when y’all donate. A person like myself, who’s been on the street all my life, got an opportunity to become a man and change his life… to be a better person.”
From age 14 to 61 on the streets…Kevin has finally gotten a fresh start.
