With Love, The Black Family

“I met Pastor Willie in 2018 when my friend told him I was staying in a hotel. A few days later someone called me to see how many kids I had, I told them my 15 year old daughter, my 9 year old daughter, my 4 year old daughter, and my 6 month old boy. On the 21st of November he brought all of my kids toys. My kids were so happy, I wasn’t going to have money for Christmas. He also gave me a gift card for $300 that helped me stay at the hotel for another month. From time to time Pastor Willie would have someone call and check up on us. Another time he dropped off food for us. I lost my job and he helped me get another.

My story is I was evicted from my apartment with my kids. The landlord would not work with us. The father of my children left us and neither his family nor my family would take us in and help us. I went to the mission but when I had another baby they started making it harder for me to be there. My kids were being mistreated and my stuff ended up being stolen. When I brought this to their attention no one even cared to help. My baby was crying one night and a worker there told me to make him be quiet. When I got into a fight about this, I was kicked out. So I started staying in a hotel.

Someone gave Pastor Willie a car and he gave it to me to get back and forth to work. I couldn’t believe the help he was giving my family. I was so very thankful. Then in 2019 it got even worse for me. I moved in with a boyfriend and he started abusing me physically. Then I found out he was touching my oldest daughter. So I took my children and our things and left and moved into a storage unit. It was very hard there. My friend told me that Pastor Willie used to be homeless and that’s why he tries so hard to help people like me. She told me that the ministry that he worked at didn’t have programs to do the things he was doing. That he was using HIS OWN money! I couldn’t believe that someone would use their own money to help people until I was contacted by my friend and was told that I needed to go to a secret meeting that was happening.

When I got there, Pastor Willie told us his story and I remember crying. When he shared that he grew up very poor and when he was a baby he slept in a dresser. And when he was homeless he felt that no one cared, no one offered him a place to stay. He said that it was the loneliest time of his life. He never wants homeless people to think they are alone. He was crying and I knew he was being honest with us. You could feel it in the room. He shared with the group that he was going to pay for all of us to move into apartments and trailers that he bought. All we had to do was keep a job and pay our bills for a year. If we didn’t have a job, he got us one. If we messed up in any way, he said that he would not be able to help us again. We had to take some classes.

Today I live in a trailer Pastor Willie bought and it's now in my name. I am working at a job that he got for me. I found a man that loves me and my kids and I’m going to ask Pastor Willie to marry us. Pastor Willie is no joke. I found out he has helped a lot of families in this town and a lot of people don’t give this man credit for anything and he doesn’t care. Even though I am not sharing my name I’m sharing what he has done for me and my kids. When I heard he left his ministry and maybe moving to another town I was happy. They may treat him better than Holland did. The things he did to save kids' lives from gangs. The work he did to keep kids in school. Holland CANNOT afford to lose him. I was so happy that he came out with the ministry he did secretly. Life-Line Ministries saved me and my family. I will be sending support to him so I can help the next family like mine.

Pastor Willie, thank you for everything you have done to help my family. My kids love you to death. And now you're helping me to forgive the people who turned their back on me and my kids. God bless you and your work. There is going to be a place in heaven for you.

With love,

The Black Family.”