My name is William Clendenin, I am 39 years old, and I grew up in Sacramento, California. As a child, I grew up in special education classes and took medicine for ADD. Drugs started at the age of 12 with many arrests and mental hospital stays. On 08-13-00 my daughter Layce was born. That kept me sober for a year or so but it was not enough for me to stop. I kept using and destroyed my relationship with my mom and family, so I moved to Missouri in 2006.
After a long jail stay I followed my family to Crane, Missouri where I got a job, a house, car, everything you could think of! I thought I was doing good, but still not enough for me! Drugs came back harder than ever. I started hanging out at the same house my family told me to stay away from. If there was a drug house, Will would find it! I started injecting meth and pain medication. This went on for about 4 years. I decided I might need some help and got to a doctor that prescribed me Suboxone and found a program that would let me take this medicine there. When I took this medicine, I believe that I was so dependent on it that it was a form of worship! I completed the program and moved in with my girlfriend at the time! We all know what happened next. It didn’t work out and drugs came back. After this one I ended up homeless in Branson for the next ten years!
Meth charge 1 happened in 2015. I went to prison and when I got out, decided that I wanted to change. I came home to mom’s house. She was very sick. This is when I first heard of Freeway Ministries. I was watching John preach the Gospel on YouTube, and I knew I wanted to be a part of Freeway but was not sure how to do so! Drugs came back into my life. I got in to an argument in a hotel in Branson where I was beaten and left for dead. While at the hospital drugs fell out of my boot and the police got them. I had to take a trip to Kansas City to have surgery on my face. I came back to my mom and started right back to drugs. Still not enough! I was going to serve myself at all costs. Nine months go by and I think I have gotten a break from the meth they had found on me. Nope. I was looking at a charge of 25 years.
While in jail I got the news of my mom passing away! I cried out to the Lord! He answered me! I started working with my dad and my aunt that lived in Sacramento. They asked if I ever heard of Freeway. I said yes, I have. My aunt started talking to John and they let me out to join Freeway Ministries where I stayed for 2 years – one year in the program and one Leadership. I am currently working at Marshfield Chevrolet, and serving at Crossbridge where I get to teach Sunday school, develop a relationship with Jesus and his word, and stop believing what society says about me and started believing in who the Bible says I am!
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV