Ashley – 2011 Graduate

Before Mercy, I was caught in a never-ending cycle of drugs and alcohol and some very unhealthy and unsafe relationships. My life was out of control, and it really scared me. I was in so deep, and I didn’t know how to get out. My joy and zeal for life was gone. I knew I was missing an intimate relationship with the Lord, so I searched online for help and found Mercy. I thought they could help me turn my life around, so I decided to apply.

While at Mercy, God restored my zest for life. My dreams and passions and desires are back. I feel like I have a purpose on this earth now, and I know that God truly loves me and calls me His own. He has shown me His true character, and I know that He will never leave me and that His grace covers everything that I’ve done.

After graduating from Mercy I started volunteering for a local humanitarian organization and met my future husband! We worked together, became friends, and then started dating. Two years later he proposed, and we’re now happily married! I also began pursuing what was the beginning stages of a professional makeup artistry career in early 2011. In 2015 I launched my very own freelance business and it is thriving! My heart is to help bring true authentic beauty to the entertainment industry and help women love who they are inside first! I spent many years not loving who I saw in the mirror, and now with the Holy Spirit on my side, I know He will guide me to help bring love and beauty to a world desperately in need. In addition to owning a business, my husband and I were recently commissioned as coordinators for the children’s ministry at our church. It’s been a journey after Mercy, to live and walk in freedom, but with the help of amazing friends and family I can say I’m thriving, no longer just surviving! Thank you Jesus!