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 No Other Way, But Surrender ...
It was bad enough living in an orphanage without a family to love. But when Ron Keifer suffered the advances of the resident staff, it was more than the child could take. "It took all the life out of me, " Ron says today. Drugs became a way to escape the abuse, the loneliness, and the lack of love.
On a November day 38 years later, Ron sat with his parole officer trying to figure out how to start over. His urine analysis had come up "dirty" and he would have to go back into drug treatment. But the treatment center had a two week wait and Ron needed shelter while he waited.
"My parole officer is a Christian and he used to preach at Bethel Mission," Ron says. "So I suggested I go there. He wanted me to check with him every day. He cared a lot about me."
While at Bethel Mission, Ron went into congestive heart failure. Hours later, he woke up in a hospital bed, flanked by his two children. Ron recalled the many times he had disappointed them and became more determined than ever to change. "All those years of being a drug addict takes a toll on your kids," Ron says. "When I woke to find them there, I knew I did not deserve their forgiveness, but I thank God for it every day.
When he was releaed a week later, the drug treatment center considered his health issues too great a risk and his parole officer allowed Ron to enter Hope Ministries' recovery program at Door of Faith.
In the program, Ron was befriended by Ron Vanderhart, a V.I.P. volunteer at Hope Ministries and pastor of Adelphi Calvary Baptist Church. "Pastor Vanderhart led me to the Lord. I consider him my closest friend. He is a sincere man who shared his family with me, which means a lot since I have no family."
For the first time in his life, Ron feels at peace. "Before I came to Hope Ministries, all I thought about were drugs, cooking meth, and staying ahead of the law. Today, I wake up and thank the Lord for what I have. I do my meditation and I ask God for strength and courage to continue. The Lord has made a difference in my life. There was so other way, but to surrender."
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