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"I have not stopped giving thanks for you..."

Dear Friends at Oasis

I left my stay with you folks almost 5 years ago. You were my seventh treatment center, but the first to suggest I pray. That saved my life & started me on a happy path.

Since then, I've had 8 sponsees & 4 have over a year (+1 more soon). I secretary 2 meetings. I've volunteered in a treatment center as the "AA Volunteer" for 3.5 years. Also, my wife & I have referred three folks to you.

On a separate line, on May 26, my wife & I will celebrate 30 years of marriage. As I've been told by folks in my "Home Group", she's a saint. Further, on June 1, I'll celebrate my first anniversary as a non-smoker--after 38 years of addiction. The nice thing here-- not only can I breathe, the savings is paying for our June trip to England--our first trip overseas.

Am I grateful? I am VERY HAPPY! Thank you for your instruction in prayer. I never had any instruction before, and my background as a Sunday school teacher (9 years), plus a church deacon & elder implied that I must know--but I didn't, and I had no idea that it was so important.

Please keep up the good work. You are valued and greatly appreciated.

Tom S.

September 24th 2002

Dear Jim,

Enclosed is what I’d imagine is the last charge for meds for Elise. Since she is moving on this weekend, I though I’d drop you a note and tell you what has been on my mind for so long.

I think you and Lindley may well have saved Elise’s life (along with the help of a huge dose of God’s love, mercy and compassion). There are no words that cold ever express the appreciation that Sara and I have for you both and for the loving, accepting and disciplined atmosphere that you have created at the Oasis. I am sure there are many folks just like Elise who you have helped reconstruct a full and productive life.

I’m sure you have plenty of regrets about your life, just like we all do, but the time will come, when you die and have a life review with God, that you will be told “Well done, Jim.” There is no doubt in my mind that God put us here to love Him and each other and to be of service to others. You can be justly proud of what you have accomplished with God’s help.

Thanks so much for who you are and for what you have done and continue to do in you wonderful work there. Sara and I will never forget you and I know Elise will always have a special place in her heart for you, Lindley and the other great folks at the Oasis.

Peace, blessings and love to you always.

Larry G.

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Dear Jim,

I am sure that you receive a great many letters from people who feel truly blessed to have received the loving care that you and your staff provide. I would therefore like to describe myself, so that you may know exactly who is writing to you. You may remember me as the young man who jumped rope incessantly. I was also the person who smoked banana peels while in treatment. I also physically threatened other residents.

My dad recommended that I be transferred to another center. Along with Manny, you and I spoke to my dad on the phone, and vehemently argued against this. I wound up going to the other treatment center, and I walked out a few days later. That was truly a depressing time for me. I didn't know where to turn, but I knew I still needed help.

You and my mother had extensive correspondence during this time. The best offer that you were able to make was for me to return, and allow my peers to decide whether or not to accept me back. After all the stunts that I had pulled, there was no telling how they were going to respond.

When I returned to Oasis, most if not all of the residents strongly expressed their desire to have me removed. I clearly remember the experience. During a special meeting to determine my fate at the center, they really let me have it. It was then that I realized for the first time how much I had affected the rest of the group. I was very sad and upset with myself.

At the end of that meeting, you told the entire group that you were going to decide whether or not to readmit me into the program. You left the room for about fifteen minutes. When you returned, you said that I would be given one more chance to prove myself, and only one chance.

That decision has meant more to me than you could ever know. I am writing to you so that you might have some understanding of the true appreciation that I feel. I am sitting here with tears in my eyes right now. I will always remember the care that you provided me in my time of great need.

Your lovely wife Kathy, and Manny are also in my prayers for all that they did for me. Thank you for your love of the L-RD, and for encouraging prayer as strongly as you do. This is the greatest lesson of all! I still wake up, and go to my bed, after my knees touch the floor.

Next month, I will be celebrating my two-year wedding anniversary with my wife Donna. We met at a Messianic Congregation a few months after I finished the program. Now I have a prayer partner to kneel with before I go to bed each night.

We are now living in Michigan, as this is where most of my family lives. I have decided to pursue a degree in Social Work, so that I may be able to help others the way that you helped me. The Admissions Office at Eastern Michigan University, where I am applying, requests a personal statement for admission to their Master of Social Work (MSW) program.

The instructions for writing the statement ask if there have been any life experiences that have contributed to my interest in pursuing a degree in Social Work. My entire experience at Oasis clearly comes to mind, and will definitely be included in my personal statement. You, and your staff are truly doing the L-RD's work. I feel truly blessed for the time I spent at your treatment center. Because you helped me, now I am able to help others.

Sincerely,

Glen B.

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