My name is Alyse. I am 37 years old, and I grew up in Chetek, Wisconsin, with a lot of love and fun, but also a lot of chaos. I didn’t grow up in the church, but I enjoyed going to youth groups and Bible camp with friends during the summer. Although God placed a few good people in my life to teach me the Word, I eventually rejected it because I did not think I was worthy of His love. By age 13, I was angry, defiant, and lost. This is when my addiction to drugs and alcohol, as well as self-harm, began.
God placed several people in my life who suggested Adult & Teen Challenge of Wisconsin. It was brought up too often to ignore any longer. Something kept telling me I had nothing to lose. I knew that if I didn’t change, nothing would ever change.
Mistee's story
Hello, my name is Mistee, and I am 40 years old. I grew up in what I thought was a normal family. At age 12, my world completely changed when my father was sentenced to 15 years in Arizona State Prison. I naively put my faith in people I should never have trusted, and this led me down a slippery path of drugs and alcohol to numb the pain, anger, and loneliness I felt. A few years later, after my beautiful baby girl was born, I was introduced to pills and then reintroduced to meth.
On April 11, 2025, God said enough was enough and pulled me out of my drug-soaked life and placed me in Outagamie County Jail. I took my concerns to the pastor at the jail, and she told me about a program called Adult & Teen Challenge. After learning more, I knew this was exactly where I was meant to be. I thank God that He cared enough to save me.
My name is Samantha, and I am 32 years old. I was born and raised in Milwaukee, WI. I was brought up in a godly home with steadfast love and consistent provision. As a family, we spent more time at church than at home. At a very young age, someone I trusted and loved began to sexually abuse me. My mind couldn’t comprehend the trauma, which led to emotional dissociation and blocking out memories of the abuse.
What I once knew about God in my head has now taken root in my heart. His love, wisdom, and grace have broken strongholds and generational curses. My identity is in Christ alone, and I choose forgiveness daily. We are all broken and in need of a Savior. His name is Jesus.
Elizabeth's story
My very first memory was a feeling of deep rejection. As a kid, I was very introverted, withdrawn, and felt awkward and different. In high school I drank for the first time, and it was love at first sight. I couldn’t stop obsessing over when I could drink again. The only time I felt comfortable in my own skin was when I would drink. From then on, I ran as far from God as I possibly could.
I’ve been here almost 12 months and can’t explain the feeling of freedom. All I know is I can breathe and I have deep purpose. I am finally home in my father’s arms right where He has always wanted me to be.
Hello! My name is Elyse and I am 38 years old. I grew up in an Evangelical Christian household in Colorado. My two brothers are 12 and 9 years older than me, so being the youngest and the only girl I felt like an only child most of my life. Alcohol was the focal point of family gatherings and I had my first drink around age 6. That same year a neighborhood boy began molesting me. I had no idea the negative impact this was having on me, and so I decided to never acknowledge it and kept it concealed. When I was 13, I got drunk for the first time. I will never forget that feeling when the alcohol hit me, the euphoria was indescribable. I was instantly hooked, and little did I know I would spend the next 24 years of my life chasing that first high.
Autumn's story
Hello, my name is Autumn, and I am 29 years old. I grew up with my mom, 2 sisters & brother, in Green Bay WI. As a little girl I was taught to say my bedtime prayers, but we only went to church occasionally. I don’t know if I ever believed that God was real.
On April 12th, 2024, God saved my life. I was arrested and hit my ultimate rock bottom. I sat a year in county jail and sobered up. My heart started to beat again as I picked up a Bible & began to pray. My sentencing was coming, and I was asking God to soften the judge’s heart and allow me to go to Adult and Teen Challenge.
Hello! My name is Alexus, and I am 23 years old. When I was born, my mom was just 17, and my dad was 20 years old. When I was 3 years old, my mom left our family, and we did not reunite until several years later. She was fighting her own battles and struggled with her mental health, which resulted in her sudden and prolonged absence. After my parents divorced, my dad remarried a woman who became my mother figure from age five on. I would say overall I had a pretty good, if not great childhood. I had a big family who loved me unconditionally. I excelled in school, was an athlete, and was always working whenever I had the chance to.
Despite having all these things, I struggled deeply with very low self-esteem and never felt that I was ever good enough.
Hello. My name is Samantha, and I am 33 years old. I grew up in Caledonia, MN and was raised Catholic. From the outside looking in, my family was perfect, unfortunately it was a very dark place behind closed doors.
My parents had their own issues, and as a result I was emotionally, mentally & physically abused. I was often neglected and locked in my room. I remember wanting to die at such a young age that I attempted to commit suicide by swallowing a bunch of pills.
Hello, my name is Amy and I am 26 years old. I grew up in Oshkosh, Wisconsin with my two sisters and my mom. My dad was incarcerated for most of my childhood, and I didn't end up meeting him until I was 17 years old. I did not grow up in a home that practiced any sort of religion, but I remember my grandma talking about God. She considered herself a Christian and that was about my only consistent experience and exposure to God that I can recall. My mom would bring us to church occasionally for holidays, but nothing was ever explained to me. As a kid I really enjoyed school and excelled until I hit middle school. That's when I was introduced to marijuana and started drinking alcohol.
Hello, my name is Andrea, and I am 43 years old. I’m grew up in Rockland, WI. My biological father was killed in a motorcycle accident just weeks after I was born. About a year following the accident my mom met the man I’ve called “dad” my entire life. My mom loved my sisters and I very much and did everything in her power to make sure our physical needs were met, however due to my parents love for partying, a lot of our emotional needs were unmet. My sister’s and I attended bible camp and church as kids, but once I was confirmed, we sort of stopped going altogether. I do however have two specific memories of asking Jesus into my heart during two different stints at bible camp. I can look back on my life now and see He was with me all along.
Home as a child was a very safe and stable environment for me. I grew up with two older sisters and two amazing parents. I looked up to my sisters a lot and loved hanging out with them. However, being the youngest I vividly remember my sisters and their friends not wanting to hang out with me because I was the youngest. On top of that my father wasn’t really one to show emotion, and as a child I craved that emotional attention. Both of these things caused me to feel very lonely and unwanted.
I can remember being depressed all my life, from a young age, maybe 7 or 8. My weight and hygiene were affected by this depression, and because I was bullied in school about it, those things got even worse. I started smoking cigarettes to fit in when I was 12. Then at about 15 I discovered alcohol and marijuana. As my partying got worse, so did my grades, I barely graduated high school. Then I moved out on my own and of course partied harder and harder.
Hello! My name is Grace, and I am 45 years old. I was born and raised in Milwaukee, WI. I come from several generations of substance abuse and chronic mental illness. It has been a sore subject for both sides of my family. Due to thick pride, we never really talked about all the issues, but rather swept them under the rug. I believe that due to the generational depression and anxiety we have endured, our main coping mechanism became drugs and alcohol to numb out the pain.