12/02/2025
This Giving Tuesday, BHP wants you to remember who your gift supports.
"I am a gratefully recovering addict and I am called Paula. I was born May 23rd, 1981. I was born with my parents married but it didn’t take my mom long to file a divorce from her very abusive husband. At the ripe age of two, I was raised in a broken family. I lived with my mom and visited my dad on the weekends. My life wasn’t so uncommon…until it was.
At twelve, I began stealing and skipping school, so my mom decided to send me to live with my dad thinking he could get me under control. That began the process of my life destruction. That’s when I became aware that my father was a raging alcoholic and drug addict. That was just the tip of the iceberg. He was a very sick man and after six months of extreme sexual, mental and physical abuse. A friend on mine went to the school counselor and told was I was going through.
I went through a long-drawn-out process, and he was eventually sentenced to 55 years in prison. That seems like a long time although not as long as the life sentence of hell I felt like I was sentenced to. It wasn’t long before I turned to drinking and drugging to mask my feelings and fears. I’ll save all the heartaches and heartbreaks I put my family and children through for another time, but I will say this, after 25 years and 3 prison numbers, Courage House and their staff have literally saved my life and presented me with an opportunity to live life like a normal being. To be the daughter my mother deserves and the mother my children deserve as well as the woman my love deserves for me to be. I’m finally able to recognize my feeling and behaviors and identify underlying issues so that I can fix them and be the person I’ve always dreamed of being. I don’t have to live angry or in fear anymore and I don’t have to mask my issues with drugs anymore. I can deal with life on life’s terms, one day at a time. This program truly is giving me my life back and I will be forever grateful. I am free and no longer a prisoner no matter my location."
Make your gift today and help us bring hope to those who need it most. https://www.bhcpartners.org/bhpsupport
Whether making a donation, attending an event, or volunteering your time you ensure that quality behavioral healthcare services are available to individuals and families in our community. With your support we can make a big difference in the lives of individuals and families dealing with mental illn...
