Doug’s Success Story

Fourteen years ago, I was living a different life. Then I came to the Rescue Mission of Salt Lake in October, 2012 and entered the New Life Recovery Program. I had spent about 30 years battling addiction and about 18 years of my life in prison. I had been trapped for so long that I never imagined a different life.

On October 4, 2026, I celebrated 14 years clean and sober. That was the same day I celebrated five years of marriage to my wife, whom I purposely married on my sobriety anniversary, in 2021. My wife and I are as opposite as two people can be. She has never drank alcohol, used drugs, or had anything to do with that kind of life. They say opposites attract, and I guess they were right.

We met through Facebook during COVID. We started talking, eventually met in person, and things grew from there. She graduated from college and has worked as an analyst for a health insurance company for 21 years. Somehow, God brought the two of us together, and I am thankful He did.

Today, we live in West Bountiful in a four-bedroom house. My mother-in-law lives in an attached apartment. She is 80 years old, and I consider it a blessing that we can help take care of her. I also have a job I never thought I would have. I drive a semi-truck, hauling loads across the country and am on the road for about three weeks at a time and home for several days before heading out again. Through my job I have been to every state in the lower 48, except one (someday I will get a delivery to Florida!).

For most of my life, I knew what it meant to be locked up. Now I know what it means to be free. Driving across the country, seeing different places and having the freedom to go wherever my job takes me is something I never take for granted. Many people will never get to see the things I have been able to see through my job.

Better than that, God has blessed me with things I never thought I would have. I have a wife who loves me, a Chevy Silverado that I bought in 2022, and a 1965 Chevy C10 sitting in the backyard that I want to restore. And then there are the dogs. We have a half Chihuahua, half pug named Chevy who thinks she owns the place. We also have a bigger dog named Bubba.

These things might sound ordinary to some people, but to me they are reminders of how much my life has changed. Most importantly, the Lord is at the center of my life. I pray every day and ask God to help me put on His armor and live the way He wants me to live. I don’t always get everything right, but my conscience is different now. I believe God’s Holy Spirit corrects me and helps me recognize when I am heading in the wrong direction.

God has also brought me out of my shell. I have never been a big people person, but He has helped me connect with people in ways I never could before. One of those people is George Sproul, a longtime counselor at the Rescue Mission. George and I have been good friends for years. When I was at the Mission, there were people who didn’t think I was going to graduate. George believed in me and I still have him over for dinner whenever I am in town.

I also remain in contact with the discipler the Rescue Mission assigned to me way back in 2012, Jim DeVore, who now lives in Beavercreek, Ohio. He and his wife were there for me and became my “adoptive” family. Unfortunately, Jim’s wife, who I called “Mama,” went to be with the Lord two years ago, but I still visit Jim, who is in his 80s, whenever my trucking route brings me near Beaver Creek.

I’ve also seen God carry me through health challenges. During COVID, I became concerned about diabetes. At one point, my blood sugar was 396 mg/dL, which is critically high. I started paying attention to what I was eating and made major changes. Today, my blood sugar is in the normal range.

I also recently learned that I have beaten Hepatitis C. The medication normally costs about $30,000, but God opened a door and I ended up paying only $5 for my prescription. About a month ago, I went back to the doctor for another test, and there was no sign of the virus. The Lord has been good to me.

Sometimes I think about everything I have now and realize how unlikely it all is, a true miracle really. I spent so much of my life addicted and incarcerated. Now I have a wife I love, a home, a career, family, friends, vehicles, dogs, and the freedom to travel across the country.

But the greatest blessing is that I have the Lord. He has given me a life I never thought I would have. On October 9, 2026, I returned to the Rescue Mission to receive my 14-year sobriety chip. Fourteen years ago, the Lord used the Rescue Mission and the people there to help give me a new direction. I will always be grateful for that.

I don’t know what the next 14 years will hold. I joke with my wife that someday soon she is going to have to push me around in a wheelchair. But whatever comes, I know Jesus will be with me. The Lord has blessed me beyond what I could have imagined, and I want to continue following Him wherever He leads. Thank you so much for supporting the Rescue Mission, saving my life, and providing a place where I could receive the long-term help I need.