November 21, 2018

It all started out innocently enough. You see, Tyler was from a bad neighborhood where it was dangerous to even walk outside, even to go to school. When he was younger, his mom would drive him. But as he got older, his mom told him he had to be responsible for getting himself to school.

Tyler was terrified to walk through the rough streets between his house and the middle school. Sometimes, he couldn’t get up his nerve to go and would pretend to be sick. But even that didn’t work for long—missing so much school caused Tyler’s grades to drop and he had always been a good student.

Tyler knew he would need some kind of protection if he wanted to travel the streets of his neighborhood safely. Some of the kids at his school were part of a gang, but that was a crowd he did his best to steer clear of—even when they asked him to join them in the past.

But Tyler was desperate for any measure of protection he could get. Even though he knew it was a bad idea, Tyler decided to join the gang.

At first, it seemed okay. Being in the gang was like being part of a family. Tyler felt much safer navigating the streets with this tough group around him. But things quickly deteriorated.

The boys in the gang got into lots of fights, and Tyler was constantly surrounded by violence. He tried his best to stay out of it, but it was hard to avoid getting caught up in it.  And some of the other members did drugs. Tyler wasn’t interested in partaking, but it made him uneasy to be surrounded by drug use.

The gang began to demand more and more of Tyler’s time and attention. Sometimes he would get pressured into skipping school. And he barely had time to do his homework because he was out too late every night.

As Tyler watched his grades slip, he began to feel more and more trapped in the gang. He knew he made a bad decision to join but had no idea how to get out. He was afraid that if he left the gang, he would have to leave his neighborhood and family for good.

Desperate, Tyler decided to confide in his school counselor. At first, he was embarrassed to explain the situation. He met several times with his counselor before he had the courage to explain the
situation.

Fortunately, the counselor understood and wanted to help him. He told Tyler about Mercy Home, a place where he could escape the dangerous neighborhood and start over without the influence
of the gang.

Tyler decided it was the only option for him if he was going to turn his life around. He moved in shortly after.

At first, being at Mercy Home was overwhelming. Tyler felt like he had so much to do to get his life back in order. He was ashamed of his past in the gang. But he adapted quickly, working hard with his tutors to catch up on schoolwork and meeting with his therapist regularly to make positive changes in his behavior.

Today, Tyler is one of the leaders at Mercy Home. He is always the first to offer an encouraging word to a young man who is new here and struggling. And his grades have improved dramatically!

He is already looking forward to going to college to become a lawyer. I am so grateful to loving Partners in Prayer like you who make these incredible transformations possible. You are truly a blessing to our kids.

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A special partnership for the sake of Mercy’s kids and for our televised Sunday Mass

You can make a difference in the life of a troubled child. Fr. Scott needs Partners to pray for our kids at Mercy Home–and also faithful Partners to help broadcast Sunday Mass at Mercy Home.

By pledging your support and your prayers, you’re offering a precious gift to Mercy’s kids–and helping our community of faith join together every week.

The boys and girls of Mercy Home are very proud of the difference they are able to make just by sharing their time and heart with others. None of this would be possible without our kind, faithful supporters, for not only sharing their friendship but for also setting an example of generosity and compassion for them to follow. During this month, please keep the young people of Mercy Home and all of our generous benefactors in your thoughts and prayers.