John Steve was born and raised in the Back of the Yards community in the inner city of Chicago, Illinois. At age 11, John was influenced to join a Latin gang which lead to a violent criminal and drug abuse lifestyle. By the age of 13 he didn’t have any spiritual support or guidance and soon became addicted to various substances. By the age of 17 he was incarcerated for a violent offense and did 5 ½ years. Through utilizing various programs such as educational and substance abuse treatment while incarcerated John turned his life around for the better. Since his release in 2011 John has continued to attend support groups like AA, NA and Celebrate Recovery along with church has maintained his sobriety. John has now been in a number of volunteer and community leadership roles and has been in Ministry for 9+ plus years. John also gets invites to speak at State Prisons to share his testimony. John had found his calling to give back to the community. Which lead him to start Herrin House of Hope. He is now the Director of Herrin House of Hope and has been utilizing his strength, hope and experience to impact others who are in similar circumstances to achieve their goals.
Find out more about John first hand at On The Dock podcast: Click Here
Tracy Lake is the Assistant Director specifically working with the AmeriCorps members at Herrin House of Hope. She works with a great team of Americorps members who seek to better their community through volunteerism and service.
Tracy is an active member of the Community of Faith Church and serves as their Business Manager and for the Hands of Hope Foundation. She is a leader for the Boy Scouts of America organization on a district and on a unit level. She runs the Cub Scout unit at Community of Faith and assists with the BSA troop as well. She also serves as the adviser for the Future Business Leaders of America organization at SIU. She has a heart for servant leadership and spends a great deal of time helping in one or more of these wonder organizations at a time.
The Herrin House of Hope is served by the Churches of the Herrin Ministerial Alliance and the Herrin Business & Organizational Community.
The Hands of Hope Foundation and its Board of Directors serves as the governing body for the Herrin House of Hope. Rev. Dr. Troy D. Benitone serves as the Board President and can be reached at Troy@hohfoundation.org. You can find out more about the parent organization for the Herrin House of Hope at www.hohfoundation.org
