D was 9 years old and his sister A 7 years old when they joined our youth church group. Their mother was divorced and had a well paying retail management position she had held for many years. However, the mother made very poor decisions about the men she brought into their lives.
D and M were with me for over 6 years before they moved away. They considered me family. Several times over those years, they would live at my house for 2 or 3 weeks while their mother was dealing with another personal problem. In those weeks I would drive them back and forth to school, which was about 45 minutes from my house.
D was a hard worker and had a good work ethic. He did graduate from high school and stayed out of any legal trouble. A had been molested by one of her mother’s boyfriends when she was a toddler and fought a lot of internal demons over the years. She had a kind heart and did well in school and likewise graduated from high school and stayed out of any legal trouble.
After they moved away, I met with them a couple times. At the age of 17 and 15, they
both left their mother, got their own apartment with the help of a co-signer and worked part time while finishing school. They took in another roommate to help pay the bills
After graduation, they both moved out of state and are pursuing successful careers.
I was very proud of them when they told me of their move into that apartment near their school. They both were very very determined to not repeat the errors of their mother and the other failed adults in their lives. I can only hope that our ministry had some positive effect and that, down the road, they will reconnect to the other Christian values we taught them.