Whitney & Blake
Northwest Arkansas · Clean since March 16, 2024
We recently started a nonprofit and want to share our "why" — beyond the very clear calling from God to do this.
This is Whitney and this is her story.
Whitney struggled with addiction since she was a teenager. In 2018, she found herself in serious trouble that led to incarceration in Texas during COVID. Upon release, she was in a halfway house in Little Rock, away from family, awaiting her full release. During that season she became involved in an abusive relationship and became pregnant with her son, Blake.
The first time we connected with Whitney was through a phone call from prison, as we explained why we felt called to take on permanent guardianship of her 14-year-old daughter. Understandably, this didn't sit well with her at first. After some strong persuading from her daughter, she reluctantly signed guardianship over to us. God sure does write some beautiful stories when you let Him hold the pen.
A short time after Blake was born, Whitney knew she needed to separate from the relationship and move back to Northwest Arkansas. She moved in with her mom in Springdale, and gave her life to the Lord at Living Faith Church in the summer of 2023. Things were looking up.
Sadly, Whitney's mom passed away suddenly that fall. As anyone who has walked through addiction — personally or alongside someone they love — knows, the journey isn't always won after the first victory. That fall she began battling addiction again, until March 16, 2024, when she turned herself into a 30-day rehab program.
Upon release she was clean and sober, but homeless, without a job, without a car, no longer having custody of her son, and struggling to hold onto hope. We weren't able to take her in ourselves, as we had become her son's foster parents. Her felony record made finding an apartment extremely difficult. She's a hard worker, but needed a way to get to work and a job that would pay enough to cover rent. Transitional housing options in the area were extremely limited — especially for women who weren't in a court-ordered program.
This is a position far too many women find themselves in (and men too — though there are far more options available for men). Thankfully, because of God, we found a renter who would let us sign for her. We were able to drive her to work, help her get her driver's license, and cover the expenses she needed at the start of this transition. Continuing her recovery was just as essential — staying connected to church, meetings, and a community cheering her on.
Today, praise God, Whitney has been clean since March 16, 2024, has custody of her son, holds down two good jobs, has a car, pays her own rent, and serves God by serving others at her church's Life Recovery meeting every week.
Our mission is to walk this road alongside multiple women across Northwest Arkansas. We invite you to come along with us and watch this ministry grow from the literal ground up. Won't He do it?