February 2026

Ashley Born Again

Born and raised in Klamath Falls as baby sister to 3 older brothers and a single mother, Ashley dreamed of playing football in high school.  Unfortunately, her dream required school attendance which she struggled with.  Instability and lack of supervision at home created a chaotic and often volatile home, leaving Ashley terrified, tired, and tardy or absent.  Ashley dropped out of school in 5th grade, 7th grade and – after fulfilling her goal of playing football at Mazama High School, for the final time in 12th grade (with only 2.5 credits remaining to earn a HS diploma). 

At 16, Ashley and her Mom were homeless.  Though she often attended church and knew of a God, she didn’t know Him.  She recalls going to football practice and returning to sleep in the car.  A kind teacher observed Ashely wear the same clothes every day, and gave her a voucher for clothing.  Other kindnesses from teachers and strangers left a lasting impression on Ashley. Though she and her Mom finally found a house, they could not afford electricity so her circumstances didn’t improve much. Chaos, conflict and insecurity made Ashley painfully shy, she often ate lunch in the locker room alone.  A small group of friends finally emerged, but they weren’t able to persuade her to stay in school.

After Ashley dropped out, she began hanging out with her brother and his older friends who used marijuana.  Because her Mom’s life was so affected by substances, Ashley avoided all drugs and alcohol before age 18, but hanging out with older kids and becoming homeless again (Ashley and Mom were evicted), she believed the lie that marijuana would “ease her stress.”  What followed was the beginning of Ashley’s long struggle with mental illness.  She became suicidal, psychotic, and completely lost her faith.  Her brother eventually got help for her, she recovered and got a job.  Ashley and Mom at long last, secured housing that Ashley worked hard to maintain.  However, she managed the toxic and verbally abusive relationship with her Mom, by working excessively.  Since Ashley’s Mom didn’t work, Ashley paid for everything and soon became a workaholic, then an alcoholic.  Eventually mental health issues resurfaced and Ashely once again found herself homeless. 

A cycle of substances, mental health breakdowns, and jobs / work addictions ending in homelessness, finally resulted in Ashley’s introduction to methamphetamine.  Ashley quickly began living for her drug, even going to jail for more charges than she can even recall which brought about an acute psychotic break.  Though she was bailed out by a boyfriend, she was on the streets in a psychotic fight or flight frenzy.  A Link Access therapist suggested Ashley come to Klamath Falls Gospel Mission.  Though it took some time, Ashley entered the Mission fearful, angry and anti-Christian.  What happened next can only be described as a divine rebirth.

At Klamath Falls Gospel Mission, Ashley was introduced to a form of Christian Love she had never experienced.  Coming from the cold streets she had difficulty at first believing it was real.  Ultimately Ashley embraced the love she was experiencing.  “I wanted what they had,” she said. Ashley told another resident how she wished she could tell people on the street about the love of God at the Mission.  The resident suggested Ashley consider applying for KFGM’s Foundation’s Discipleship program, which she did.  Ashley realized she was falling into the same pattern at the Mission of transferring her drug addiction to work addiction.  She was confronted by disciple teachers and learned to surrender her work to the Lord. 

Ashley graduated from KFGM’s Foundation’s Discipleship Program, earning her GED in the process.  She reports being more peaceful, stable and financially secure than ever before in her entire life.  Ashley is now successfully balancing work, living on her own and attending church.  She is substance free by God’s good grace for the first time in her adult life. She volunteers for the Mission whenever time and opportunity allow, and is so grateful for the life skills she learned at Klamath Falls Gospel Mission and the foundational that has changed her life.

II Corinthians 5:16 – 18: “This means that our knowledge of men can no longer be based on their outward lives . . . For if a man is in Christ he becomes a new person altogether – the past is finished and gone, everything has become fresh and new.  All this is God’s doing, for he has reconciled us to himself through Christ;”