Born in 1971 in Selma, Alabama to a young unwed mother, Ron grew up in the care of his maternal grandmother, a woman of faith who took him to church every week. Despite his grandmother’s love, Ron couldn’t escape his father’s absence in his life, a gap that left him profoundly insecure.
Throughout his childhood and into young adulthood, Ron wrestled with this insecurity, never comfortable in his own skin. To cope, he sought meaning and belonging in often questionable places given to traumatic situations. Then came alcohol and recreational drugs. Ultimately, the cost of this lifestyle and a continued lack of meaning culminated in Ron’s decision to take his life.
But God had different plans. In the depths of depression, confusion, and lostness Ron remembered something his grandmother had told him about Jesus. She said he could find Jesus at the Pacific Garden Mission in Chicago. At God’s prompting and as a last resort, Ron packed a bag and traveled to Chicago.