Terry’s choices
story by Tyler Essary
The smell of baked pepper chicken filled the air at Boulware Mission, a home for the homeless or the addicted.
A laugh from Terry Walls, 59, drifted along with the aroma from the kitchen.
“I really like being in the kitchen and showing some of the younger ones how to cook,” he said.
Terry, a resident at Boulware Mission, landed there because of choices.
The drugs and alcohol that clouded Terry’s past caught up to him in the present. A stroke in May of 2013 started the downward slide of his health.
His choices – some his and others handed to him – involved losing two best friends to a gang shootout, and three sons to a divorce. He also became estranged from his biological family. The slide started with one beer, he said. He gambled. He lost.
But choices at the mission push him farther from his past. He brings residents together with love – a family like the one he left behind.
Residents at Boulware know Terry’s story. It mirrors many of theirs. They want love, and they want to heal. Terry brings that, often person to person, when people need it.
His choice.
“God put me here to help people,” he said. “Addiction is a powerful thing, and I still struggle daily, but I have God for support.”
Krystal Medley, (left) an advanced practice registered nurse, works with registred nurses Michele Linn and Krystal Medley to prepare the procedure of scraping dead skin.
Health battles have taken a toll on Terry Walls, including ulcers. The leg wrap helps drain fluid.
Terry Walls rests against the kitchen counter after preparing lunch for the clients at the Boulware Mission. Medication he takes for Parkinson's disease and ulcers cause constant drowsiness. "The pain doesn't bother me," Terry says. "I've gotten used to it."
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Terry Walls leads Boulware Mission clients in prayer after a "confession" meeting in the chapel. "After every meeting, we like to talk about something happy from the past," he said. "That way, we end every meeting on a happy note,"
Timmy Dukes helps put Terry Walls in bed for his afternoon nap at the Boulware Mission. Walls takes pain medication for his ulcers, and it causes drowsiness. "I hate seeing him like this," Dukes said. "I was really sad when he had his stroke."
Terry Walls and Timmy Dukes became fast friends at the Boulware Mission. The two plan on living together when back in the world.
Timmy Dukes helps Terry Walls season chicken for dinner at the Boulware Center. Walls worked as a chef. "There are a lot of alcohol and drugs in the food industry, so that just made me use even more," Walls said. Walls oversees the mission's kitchen.
Jacob Wilkerson, 21, (left) and Terry Walls react to a joke in the dinning hall at the Boulware Mission. "We all like to mess with each other here and especially play little pranks," Walls said.
Terry Walls seeks sanctuary in the chapel at the Boulware Mission. Walls says faith drives him to help others — and to stay sober. "I'm here for a reason, and I know God wants me here to help people get over their hurdles," he said.