When he was twelve years old, Eric took his first sip of alcohol from his father on Christmas morning, igniting a relentless quest for that fleeting high. Addiction became his hidden obsession—one he was able to hide for decades—until he lost everything. His job. His home. His wife. His kids.

Eric had made it. He spent decades climbing the corporate ladder, earning a good salary as an IT Director, and supporting the life he had made with his wife and two kids. From the outside, he had it all. But addiction slowly consumes a person from the inside out. By 2012, after years of hiding his struggle, his life started to unravel. One by one, all the pieces of his life fell away—the home with a pool, his career, and his family—and the next eight years were a blur of dead-end jobs, blackouts, and the crushing weight of regret as he had to live with the consequences of his alcoholism.

By 2020, Eric finally hit rock bottom. He was homeless and utterly alone. Every relationship Eric had was ruined. Everything he had built was destroyed. Desperate, he reached out for help from Gospel Rescue Mission, deciding to get clean and pick up the pieces of his broken life. It was tough, but over time, sobriety brought a clarity Eric had not known in a very long time. For the first time in years, he felt a glimmer of hope. But the enemy wasn’t done with him yet.

Six months into recovery, a familiar thought crept into his mind. “One drink won’t hurt… no one needs to know.” He walked away from the Recovery Program.

But God is a God of grace. And He wasn’t done with Eric.

After leaving GRM, Eric bought a bottle of liquor, determined to drown his sorrows, utterly defeated, but the memories of what he lost came flooding back. He saw the wreckage his addiction had caused. With tears rolling down his face, Eric cried out to God. “I don’t want to do this anymore. I don’t deserve this!”

And then, in a clear, unwavering voice, he heard the Holy Spirit’s response, “No, you don’t deserve this.”

At that moment, he knew God had other plans for his life, so he picked up the phone and called the police, asking them to take him to detox. Once he sobered up, he reached out to GRM, filled with hope but fearing rejection.

Instead, he heard, “You’re welcome back.”

He felt God’s grace when he walked through those doors again, finding all his belongings waiting for him. His fears were unfounded. He was immediately welcomed back and re-entered the Recovery Program—more determined than ever to get it right.

“Going through the program was hard… but it saved my life.”

For the next year, Eric dedicated himself to recovery. He faced the demons of his past, taking responsibility for the pain he’d caused. But as graduation approached, a new fear gripped him. “Where do I go from here? Who would hire me? I haven’t had a steady job in over a decade.”

He felt lost, unsure of his future. He’d found peace but had no confidence. Who would want to hire a former addict?

Then, he saw an opening at the GRM Donation Center. He applied, unsure if he’d even get an interview. But, to his surprise, he was offered the job.

For Eric, this wasn’t just a job. It was restoration!

“ I felt a sense of pride that I could get the job, that they wanted me! And now I feel like I’m accomplishing something. I’m doing good work helping others.“