Our Stories

We each have our own individual stories. It is our stories that make us who we are. Along the journey of life, a few of us are lucky enough to cross paths and our stories intersect. 

Here are just a few intersection stories in the lives of Mercy Phoenix friends. 

On a hot summer day in July of 2016, we met Edgar. He was sitting by a dumpster attempting to catch any break from the Sun he could. We introduced ourselves and he opened up about his story. He is originally from Guatemala and his girlfriend had recently passed away, leaving him on the streets. Near the trash bin, a memorial cross had been erected in her honor. Edgar was deeply grieving. To cope, he drank; he drank so much, he began having health issues. Doctors told him his life depended upon him stopping his alcohol consumption. Amidst the half a day round trip visits to the hospital for check-ups, Edgar got a job flipping an advertisement sign for an area company. He was dedicated and did such a great job, the business owner offered him a full-time position at another location and housing. He has now been sober for almost 2 years. We always looked forward to seeing Edgar each Sunday. He has a great smile and adores our son. They played monster trucks together on multiple occasions. Edgar is never far from our thoughts and we are so grateful for the relationship we were able to create!

In the fall of 2017, we met James in the park. He was sitting on a park bench with his bike parked beside him. He had heard about the family that comes to the park on Sundays and was there waiting on us when we arrived. James with salt and pepper hair and mustache had a wonderful smile and was very polite. We continued to see James weekly and we always asked how he was doing. He was trying to get sober and turn his life around. For a couple of weeks, we were concerned as he seemed to disappear. He had been arrested and a hefty fine was placed on him. Once released from jail, he was able to secure a job and start working. The pay was not enough to afford housing, but he could at least begin to pay of his court fine. Seeing his hard work, we offered to help him pay some of his fine; James declined. He wanted to do it on his own. In October of 2018, James’ fine was paid in full and was staying sober. His smile still fully intact, James is continuing to work to change his life and get off the streets. We still see James from time to time and we continue to check on him and celebrate his wins! 

Emily was a heavy meth and heroin user. Often, when we would see her, she would be nodding off sitting against the wall of the park bathroom. She was frail; she was already small in stature, but the drug use made her even more small. She confided one Sunday that she had been beaten and raped the day before. All of her stuff was stolen, and she did not have any clothes besides what she had on. We did not see Emily for a couple of months and asked if anyone knew of her whereabouts. In March of 2018, Emily reappeared at one of our stops. She talked of how grateful she was for the love and encouragement we always shared with her. She had been in jail. While there, she became sober and started her recovery journey. Currently, Emily is working towards her one-year sobriety and lives in an apartment. 

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