Testimonies

My name is Carol Forte and I was raised with four brothers, my mother and dad. By the time I reached the 6th grade I had attended six elementary schools. My dad was a poor provider and drank heavily and regularly. He would work, get paid, go out to cheap bars and entertain others while his wife and kids were at home hungry, with rags for clothing, and bills unpaid. Because of this pattern we never stayed in apartments very long. We moved from place to place, in with relatives, or just out on the streets. By the time I was a teen I became embarrassed because I never had new clothes for school and my so-called friends started to notice. When I began high school I started to become attracted to older guys who were "hustlers" who liked younger women. They would offer me "things" and I would accept. In the process I met my daughter's father, LaVelle, through a cousin of mine. I had to drop out of school in the twelfth grade because I became pregnant. He was in and out of prison and an ongoing relationship was impossible. By this time I had started smoking marijuana, drinking cheap alcohol (Silver Satin and Kool-Aid mixed) and taking occasional sleeping pills for recreation. My daughter's father was very insecure and abusive, physically, and I couldn't tolerate that for long. I married my first husband when Roxannes dad was incarcerated. I was in pursuit of a sense of security and some kind of normal life. That, too, was filled with problems involving a third party. Over the years I experienced one heartbreak after another. I married two other men and each for the wrong reason. I didn't have any plans for the future, no direction. Because of my lifestyle, I met other women in similar situations and they became my new set of friends. Over the next 18 years I graduated from occasional use of illegal drugs and prescribed medicines (which were prescribed by quacks (doctors) that abused Medi-Cal) to constant use of drugs. My friends were pimps and whores and petty hustlers and drug dealers. Drug trafficking was profitable at first. But, I found out the literal meaning of "play with fire and you get burned." Everybody I knew, including me, eventually got addicted to drugs. After I found myself in the same place emotionally and financially after all those years and my daughter now in her senior year in high school it finally hit me that "something" had to be done! God had already started working on me. I didn't realize it until over a decade later when I found a Bible that I had been writing scripture down in for approximately four years. I had had good jobs over the years but they didn't last. I had worked for the Santa Monica Police Department as a Steno Typist in the Detective Bureau typing up all of the police reports, except drug cases because of my affiliations in the community which the police knew about. I had also worked as an UN-sworn police officer writing traffic tickets daily in the beach community. Because I was now hooked on drugs and living a miserable life, I wanted a way out. God sent a worker to talk to me. I was waiting for my boyfriend to wake up so I could get my morning fix and function normally when the 700 Club came on and it seemed that this man, Ben Kinchelow, was talking directly to me. I listened and immediately accepted the Lord Jesus as my personal Savior. Two weeks later I was arrested for a Kidnap/Robbery that I committed. I was taken to the Santa Monica Jail where I was interviewed by one of the detectives who I used to work with. Sadly, my daughter was going to graduate from high school two weeks later and I had a no bail hold because I was on probation. . I had been on probation almost constantly since 1970. On the day she graduated I was across the street, literally, in a holding cell waiting to go to arraignment. I fought my case for 10 months from Sybil Brand Institute for Women (LA County Jail for Women) even though I knew I was guilty as sin. While in there I met this wonderful, devoted Chaplain, Lelia Mrotzek, who nurtured me, discipled me, and guided me through Bible studies in my pursuit of Jesus. I found out who Jesus was and what He had done for me. I fell in Love with Jesus. I also gained 30 pounds. When I was released to receiving at CIW to serve my six-year sentence I was happy to go. I didn't want to go to CRC (California Rehabilitation Center) but that's where I spent the next 29 months of my life. I started attending Bible studies nightly and became absorbed in the study of The Word. I grew as a Christian and was gaining strength in order to make it on the outside…if I would "ever" get out…it seemed. That's where I met the Women Aglow women and advisors. If I'm not mistaken, this was the beginning of the Aglow Prison Ministry and I was privileged to be one of the first honorary Aglow Members on the inside. They came in for the next two years faithfully, and Earlene Leming always came on Sundays to play the piano for
our services. When I was released someone was there, Earlene; throughout my first year someone was there, Carol Drey, Brenda Brosseau, Earlene, Mary Andrews, Lee Krueger, Pat Latiolait, Audra Neish, and many more, were there, and they are still there for me along with new ones like Rachel Bondshu! And now there are ex-felons who are in a position to be there for me and encourage me. They, Aglow Prison Ministry team members, have devoted their lives to women like myself. This wasn't a passing fancy for them…this was and is a real ministry for them. My relationship with my daughter has been restored, I am now a mother-in-law (for fourteen years) and a proud grandma of Little five year old Terry, Jr. My family relationships are better than ever. Because of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, strong family support, and Aglow aftercare, which continues to grow, I can proudly say that the cycle was finally broken. I am still a Christian and I will always love the Lord. I have gone back to school and completed an Associates Degree in Criminal Justice, a Bachelor's Degree in English Education, and have one more class to complete a Master's Degree in Education with emphasis on Library Media Technology. I've been a public school teacher for two years and a Library Media Specialist for a year in the same school district. To God be the Glory!