For Deanna, heartbreak and fear had made every day a struggle to survive. Tending to her dying mother day after day for three long years had proven too much. So Deanna turned to alcohol as a way to cope.
But by the time her mother’s pain and suffering were over, Deanna’s next drink was the only thing that mattered to her.
She remembers the day she found herself standing in front of Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM) with nothing but the clothes on her back. She was in a fog, but still understood that this was her last chance to beat her addiction to alcohol or lose everything—her ability to work or ever live independently again, the love of her children, and perhaps even her life.
Help and hope when all seemed lost
“When I first came here, I was a mess. I was at rock bottom, not functional any longer,” Deanna says. “My son who is in college was looking at me like, ‘Who are you? What happened to the lady that used to help other people?’”
“When I first came to treatment, I was suicidal,” she says. “I didn’t want to be here, I just wanted the pain to stop.” But through therapy and the treatment program offered at DRMM, Deanna came to understand that she desperately needed God’s help.
“I should be dead. I shouldn’t even be sitting here talking to you, but the program, it worked. It eased the pain,” Deanna says. “The people in this ministry are helping me.”
A second chance in life
Deanna knows now that God has a plan for her and clings to his Word to guide her. “My favorite verse is Philippians 4:13, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.’ It took a long time to understand what it meant.
“God made no mistake on me because when I look in the mirror now, I love myself. I can smile and it’s not painful,” she says. The process has also brought healing to Deanna’s family. “My children forgive me, my sister and other siblings, too, and I forgave myself.”
With support from caring friends and donors, Deanna has completed a nursing program and works each day to help others find the courage and support to break their addictions. “I’ve lost friends . . . they’ve died because of their addiction. I’ve been clean for two years and I don’t ever want to go back in that darkness.”
Deanna is living proof of how your support is truly saving and changing lives. She is deeply thankful for getting a second chance in life . . . and a chance to help others. She encourages everyone to continue to support DRMM because the need is so great. “Whatever you give, you’re going to help save somebody’s life. Your gifts provide clothes, food, and other resources to help with school and work. You help someone like me not be discouraged.”
This Christmas, Deanna will be counting her many blessings and YOU are among them! Thank you for partnering with DRMM to save and change lives in Detroit!