A few months ago, a new face came to our Dad’s Group. He had found one of our cards and decided to come and see what we are all about since he has little one coming soon. You see, the children from his first marriage are grown adults. It’s been many years since he was father to a newborn and he wants to get it right.
“Jim” and his girlfriend are an interesting couple with, shall we say, a colorful past. You see, he’s in his 40s and she’s in her 20s. To make things more interesting, she used to be a drug dealer and he’s a recovering addict himself. Recently they have learned she is pregnant with their first child.
This isn’t Jim’s first rodeo. He has three grown children from a previous marriage, all with whom he has a good relationship. Sadly though, he served three months in prison for abuse of his current girlfriend whom he claims beat her own face with a pop bottle and then called the police accusing him of assaulting her. According to him, she is Schizophrenic and was not medicated at the time. Now out of prison, they are putting their lives back together with each other and he is striving to be the best dad to their new little blessing as he can be.
Jim is working hard to get his life back on track. He’s working through his addiction with the help of Challenge Ministries, a local non-profit that works with both men and women with a criminal past to succeed in the workplace helping them to be employable again. He owns his own business working on service vehicles.
Now actively involved with our Men’s Group, Jim reflects on his past saying we are exactly what he has needed for a long time and he is truly excited about being a part of this amazing group of men. He’s now one of our biggest cheerleaders advocating for us to police officer friends, the judge who has been invested in his success, and more importantly, to his friends who need our services. He carries our Dad’s Group cards, passing them out everywhere he can. Now he’s working on introducing us to Challenge Ministries providing them with another resource to help men like him.
Please join us in praying for Jim that he continues his journey through the grace of Jesus Christ to become the best father ever.
Geoff Trapani
Fatherhood Coordinator