“Why do you want to get sober and stay sober when you’re released?” The Orange County Rescue interviewer looked Kimberly squarely in the eyes as he posed the question.
“My children,” Kimberly said with deep resolve. Although she never lost her eldest son, her younger two were put in foster care and then adopted. Now in jail on drug trafficking charges after a 28-year addiction, she hadn’t spoken to them in years and had a record that felt like it was a mile long. She ached for an opportunity for a new start. She continued, “One day, my boys are going to find me. And when they do, I want them to find someone that has changed her path, not someone who just continued in the path she had been on.”
When she got released, she was determined to head straight to the rescue mission. Temptation came quickly—as she was heading there! An old friend turned up with the suggestion that they spend the evening doing drugs together. Kimberly turned her down, saying “I’m on a mission to change my life.”
At the rescue mission, she stayed sober and rebuilt her relationship with God. There were kind mentors who met with her, and she enjoyed going to church and Bible studies. “I was surrounded by love that I hadn’t felt in a long time.” It was also a time of vocational training for Kimberly. “They taught me about work ethic and what it means to work in a chain of command. They really taught me how to live. That made it possible for me to start over. They taught me how to be a beautiful woman of God.”
A huge part of the work of redemption and healing in Kimberly’s life came through the Trinity Law Clinic. Kimberly’s husband was also addicted to drugs, and Kimberly’s only option was to separate from him. The legal clinic helped her through her divorce, making a complicated process simple and easy so that Kimberly could focus on healing and restoration in other areas of her life.
The Trinity Law Clinic also helped Kimberly with some criminal matters. When they discovered that there was a warrant out for her arrest, they helped her navigate the situation, and assisted with record-clearing.
No one was surprised when Kimberly graduated valedictorian of her class at the rescue mission! Today, she has a great job in property management and works in recovery, helping women who are fresh out of detox. “I get to sit with them and talk with them about what God has done for me. I talk about going to church and reading my Bible. I tell them that God is what you need in your life. Only one man died on the cross to forgive you for your sins. Jesus is Jesus.”
And as for her sons? In August, they found her, and she got to meet her grandchildren for the first time! As Kimberly had hoped for during her final days in jail, they found someone who was truly on a different path. “It is like God just repaired and restored and gave us all that love back…I even got to buy my first grandma gift!”
Kimberly is grateful to everyone who gives so generously to the Trinity Legal Clinic. She says, “It wouldn’t be possible without your help for us to get our lives back on track, to get the legal problems back on track, and to get felonies dismissed so that we can get better opportunities. Those of us at the mission wouldn’t have the successes that we’ve had without you. You are saving our lives.”