Hi my name is Ronnie Inchboard and I was brought up in London by my parents as an only child. Naturally, I was a spoilt brat. I had everything I wanted. If my mum wouldn’t give it to me I only had to ask my father. I knew I could get anything from him. As I grew up I started knocking about with guys older than me who had money and what went with it. They were of a criminal element in North London and pretty heavy in the way they did things: robberies, protection rackets, etc. I wanted to be just like them so I started working for them in the evenings.
Things got better financially. I worked full time and I got fast cars, fast women, flash clothes, etc. I had it all. Then my father died. That really got me. I started drinking, taking drugs and doing anything to make myself feel better but it just got worse and worse. I lost my job. My bosses didn’t want to know me. I lost my home, my wife, everything. I ended up homeless. Even my own mother didn’t want to know me and sadly she passed away while I was living on the streets. I went to prison twice but just ended up back on the streets. I thought, “Could it get any worse?” I was living on the streets for about 5 years. I kept moving from area to area in London, drifting. Then one day I met two guys in a park in Ilford. They told me about Teen Challenge and how they could help me. At the time I thought, “I’ll see what I can get out of this.” I decided to go to Teen Challenge London for a couple of months to sort myself out. Or that’s what I thought. I went to the local council first and they told me that I’d have a flat by the following week. I told them about Teen Challenge but they tried to put me off. I walked out and though about it for about an hour. I bumped into a woman and asked her where I could find Teen Challenge. She said, “I know what you’re going to do. Good luck! Just turn around!” I couldn’t believe it! There was Wilkerson House right in front of me! That was 7 years ago. Now I have a new Father in God, a brother in Jesus, the gift of the Holy Spirit and lovely Scottish bride. The staff at Teen Challenge London were wonderful. The love I experienced from the staff and residents was amazing. I cannot repay what God has done for me. I have a new life, a new plan and a new purpose. Amen.