Pete is 42 and has been at Helping Up Mission almost 5 months. He left home at age 16, having completed the 10th grade. A bright guy, he always worked hard and was able to survive.
But continuing to stay on the move, Pete has lived and worked all over American. At one point he even hitchhiked from the west to the east coast. While this was all interesting – and, sometimes, downright exciting – one of the reasons he could never settle down was his ongoing commitment to alcohol.
Last year, after 18 months sober and while cooking in New Orleans’ French Quarter, he decided to hike the Appalachian Trail. Starting at the Trail’s southern end in Georgia, Pete and made it a few hundred miles before some other hikers hooked him up with a few drinks.
By the time he got to Tennessee, Pete knew he needed help and called his dad for suggestions. They settled on him going to Baltimore and, his second day in town, he winds up as an Overnight Guest at HUM.
Almost 5 months later, back in recovery and settled in here, Pete has also decided to finally finish up his high school diploma. He’s also decided he wants to go to college and has a biotech field picked out.
One of the neat things for guys at HUM is the opportunity to do a bit of a “start-over” in life and career. In golf they call it a “mulligan.” At Helping Up Mission, it’s how we roll!
One Stroke at a Time,
Pastor Gary Byers
Deputy Director