Meet Nick
Not all broken roads come from rocky starts. Nick comes from a beautiful family and experienced a childhood lacking very little. He recalls quite fondly the love and security he felt as a child. It wasnβt until his teen years that he began looking to bad influences for a mold to build his identity around. As involved as his parents were in trying to redirect and encourage him to make better choices, Nick found himself choosing life with his buddies. A life lying on the streets over the comforts of his own bed in a loving environment. A life with role models living up to a Scarface persona in an era where having a street hustle was a measurement of manhood. Nick found himself fitting in well on the streets and making friends easily. Though maybe not with the right connections, his likable personality made it easy to find jobs. He did however find it difficult to keep legitimate employment due to his drug use. It was in his teen years that he first began playing around with marijuana. βIt started out as a jokeβ, he sighed, recalling how quickly it led to so many other very serious addictions and realities.
Nick very soberly admits, βThe choices I made were mine, nobody else chose for me.β He recalled, βI thought that I had to act a certain way to be the person I thought I wanted to beβ¦.I didnβt know what truth wasβ.
When he was 26 he decided to take his chances with a brick wall going 105 mph, assuming he would lose the battle. Something or someone must have known βhis story would be his strengthβ all these years later. Though it took him to his mid-40s, as he states, βto be sick and tired of being sick and tiredβ, Nick has turned the years of bad choices and repeated broken cycles into a true testament of what can happen when you grasp hold of the true identity you have in Christ.
At 51 when he was diagnosed with throat cancer, he didnβt realize everything that was still in store for him. Losing the ability to speak was never where he would have imagined himself.
But, it wasnβt until just a couple of years ago, that a simple request from one of his physicians changed everything. His doctor asked if heβd like to pray with him and though nothing about Nickβs outer circumstances changed something inside him has forever been changed. βIt woke me up to everything and how blessed I really wasβ, he said. A short six months after he was presented with an opportunity to undergo a special procedure that could give him a chance to speak again. As he jokingly shared, βAnd I havenβt shut up since.β
Today, Nick works in the parts warehouse at the Dignity Center. He recalls that since the day he came in and Mrs. Sandy prayed with him, βMy day starts and ends with a prayer.β Coming up on 2 years of sobriety, he remains grateful for, βbeing given lots of chancesβ and the ability to learn things along the way. βItβs not easy, but Iβm blessed. I get to share life with my motherβ, he said with gratitude in his voice. βWalking in these doors was a miracleβ, he recalled. There is support around him and an opportunity to work and help support others in his life. He boasts about being able to have a bank account and the ability to help his mother. Recently he lost his brother, but even through that loss, he found comfort in being able to be there for his mom like she always was for him. He planted a tree in her front yard as a memory to his brother.
βI canβt complain, I have my own place, vehicle, best friends, and this community,β he stated humbly but with confidence, βI just canβt believe where I am today.β When asked why he stays at Wear Gloves, βThis place is amazingβ¦theyβll give you a chance. I havenβt had a single limitation based on my medical condition. Not everyone was willing to give me a chance you know, like Iβve been around a while and donβt know any places like this.β Thoughtfully he stated, βThe church services are just icing on the cake. They broke the mold with Mr. Ken too.β
If you ever visit Wear Gloves and have the opportunity, go meet Nick. His story truly is his strength, and meeting him will revive your hope in second chances and Godβs ability to meet you where you are.
However, just remember that if itβs lunchtime, youβll find him at the table, not the warehouse. Nick is quick to admit heβs at his best when heβs fed. If only all of us would come to the table with as much honesty and openness as Nick, we may all find ourselves a little closer to our best.