In order to tell you where I’m going, I must tell you where I’ve been. I’m forty-seven years old and have been in and out of jail and or prison for thirty years. As I write this I can’t even believe how much I have missed out on. Beside the pain I have gone through, I have hurt my family and friends like no other. When I came to prison this time I was a broken man in many ways. I needed to do something different in my life.

It all started with getting and staying sober. In one more month I will be four years clean. As a direct result I have stayed ticket free and was able to come to Bachman. I have been privileged to be able to work at ACI/Papa John’s for the past fifteen months and it is one of the best things that have ever happened to me. This is the longest that I have ever held the same job. I wake up every day with a sense of purpose and pride in what I’m doing and who I am.

My goals are all based on what I’m doing in the present. I have never owned anything that I worked for, but that is all changing with the money that I’m saving from this job. I’m going to buy a home for myself and plant my feet firm on the ground, so that I can be a positive part of this world. Just knowing, that upon release, I can have a job with Papa John’s is a hug weight off me. All I know is that I can make it this time and I will. There is so much more I could say but I will close with this; the best feeling in the world is finally knowing I took a step in the right direction, a step toward the future where everything that I never thought possible is possible.

Thank you for the opportunity and may God bless you all.