My Sisters Story
My sister and I were always close, until I lost her in 2002. When our neighbor told her "here this is just like weed have some". That is the day I lost my little sister to CRACK and before she know it a her life was no longer her own. Being young and naive she believed him and tried it, and she fell in love with it. I noticed I was losing my sister. We no longer hung out and did the things we used to do. She was pulling away from the family and from me. I was so lost for words. She left behind her first born son in my care, which i was more than happy to do. Coming from a broken family, all I wanted to do is keep the little family that I did have together.
Meanwhile, I never gave up hope. I remember many nights looking for her up and down Orange Blossom trail in Orlando Florida. She was used as a working girl on the streets of 441 O.B.T. Throughout 2003-2007 her life was a constant revolving door of incarceration, destruction, abuse, Human trafficked and homelessness. Lost in the streets, I would cry worried and wondering not knowing were she was is she alive or dead my thoughts of her were haunting. "why" my baby sister. Going in and out of hotel rooms looking for anyone that might have seen her. And when I did find her I would try to have her baker acted.
Sending her to program after program and she would just run away. And I would have to remind myself she will get better do not give up HOPE. She would run away time and time again. The treatment centers would call me to inform me that she had ran away once again, and out again I would go out to look for her in the HOPES of finding her. Being a single mother of my own it was hard now caring for my daughter and her 2 sons. I said to myself I will not give up hope for her, she will be restored and there is only one being that can do that. It was like my prayers were answered. She ending up in and out of jail a few times. But not enough to get her clean and sober, when she was sentenced to 18 months in prison, I was some what happy to know she was safe and alive upon her release, instead of going back to the streets she went to transition home in Lakeland. There is where her love for Jesus was formed in a way that gave her the ability to withstand her temptations of relapse their she found the only one who could save her. Praise god she found him in prison. OUR LORD AND SAVIOR SAVED MY SISTER. So without the grace of god and his unconditional love and the Hope I had in my god and sister, she has been made knew and so can you. Just have HOPE........MY SISTERS HOPE....Thank you My God.
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you."
Wanda Soto
Co-Founder/Sister