My name is John. I am 32 and I grew up in Kampala.
For more than ten years, alcohol and drugs controlled my life. I lost my job, my family stopped answering my calls, and eventually I was sleeping on the streets of Kisenyi. I told myself that nobody cared, and after a while I believed it.
On Saturdays I volunteer as a peer mentor, because I know what it means when someone refuses to give up on you.
In 2024 the Voices of Recovery outreach team found me there. They did not lecture me. They sat with me, shared tea and asked my name. A week later I walked into my first Echoes of Hope listening circle.
The weekly circles, my peer mentor and the life skills sessions slowly gave me back my strength. Some weeks were very hard. What kept me going was that someone always called to check on me.
Today I have been clean for eighteen months. I have custody of my daughter again, I finished a welding course and I now run a small workshop of my own. On Saturdays I volunteer as a peer mentor, because I know what it means when someone refuses to give up on you.
