Several years ago, Kory and Alana walked through our gates, along with their daughter, Kayden. Though they came from a place of such brokenness and pain, it brings me great joy to share their story with you now, in light of how their lives have drastically changed.
Today, Kory and Alana are still great friends of the Rescue Mission. They continue to visit and stay in touch, and you can often find Kayden playing in the courtyard with her friends that still live here. Seeing this family come back is a beautiful reminder of the restoration and joy that is possible through Christ. I pray that Kory and Alana’s story encourages you today.
This is Kory and Alana’s story.
A few years ago, Kory found himself alone on Christmas, in a jail cell. Only a stinking mattress and a sickly glow coming from the overhead light filled the cell. All Kory could think of was his family, and how we would be missing Christmas with them. Just as he had missed his daughter’s birthday. Just as he had missed so many other moments.
Alone in his gloomy cell, Kory hit rock bottom.
“I went to jail because of homelessness and drug use,” Kory remembers. “I lost everything that day. That Christmas was one of the most depressing times of my life. All I wanted was to be with my family.”
Then God gently nudged Kory’s thoughts in a different direction. The deep longings in Kory’s heart began to surface. …I want to provide a stable home for my daughter. Make sure she’s in school. I want her to always have enough…to not be hungry….
“Homelessness was a bad feeling, especially when my daughter felt hungry,” Kory recalls.
With a renewed purpose in his heart, Kory brought his wife, Alana, and their daughter, Kayden, to the Village of Hope, where they were given their own room and a taste of their first good, hot meal in a long time.
As life settled around them, Kory and his family began a new routine – one that focused on giving them the tools to heal, restore, and become self-sufficient. With the help of a counselor, Kory worked on confronting his drug problem and making better choices to be the husband and father his family needed.
Living on the streets was a daily fight to survive, not a time to cultivate family relationships. Both Kory and Alana needed help to renew their commitment to each other and their daughter. At this Mission, Kory quickly made up for lost time with his family.
“My daughter is so happy to spend time with us. Being with her…it is awesome,” Kory beams.
Getting to a good place emotionally is not the only help Kory and his family got at the mission. Kory and Alana went through our Road to Success workshop and both found full-time employment shortly after. They have now graduated from the Mission and were able to move into their own home with the money they had saved while at the Village of Hope!
Because of you, hurting people like Kory and Alana have somewhere to turn when they are at their most desperate. Thank you for your generosity!
Giving online is easy, safe, and quick. Your donation will make an immediate impact to provide meals, shelter and services for a homeless family in desperate need of a hand up to self-sufficiency.
