Kelly Mac’s Story

Hi. My name is Kelly Mac, and I came to Mn Adult and Teen Challenge after I’d been bouncing around from jail to treatment center. This was my seventh treatment when I came here, and I was just going to do about 28 days because I was going to be ready to go after that. About three weeks into short-term, I realized that I didn’t have a relationship with my children, and I probably wouldn’t unless I started to think about doing something different this time. At any other treatment I’d walked out after 28 days. Here I had staff that came and invested in me and started talking to me about the Long Term program and about the benefits I would get from that. I had no relationship with my three sons at that time, and I wanted to so badly that I made a big choice. Once I made that choice and I went to long term, things started to open up for me. Every now and then, my boys would drop by for a visit or they’d pick up the phone when I actually called. But there was a lot of work that still needed to be done.

With my oldest son, things were still really rocky, but the longer I stayed in long-term and the more I put the work in and the more I pressed in, things started to open up for me. Doors opened up, my kids came more, and there was a joy back in us. They started to trust me again, and I saw more and more restoration.

Now I have full restoration with all three of my sons. I get to watch their kids. That would’ve never happened had I not pressed into this program and spent a long time here working on the things that I needed to I have trust. I have love, and I have a great relationship with all my children.