My Name Was

"My name is Francisco Gonzalez, and I am a 31-year-old former drug user, drug dealer, and the father of two beautiful girls. When I got out of prison the last time, I wanted to stop selling drugs and running the streets, but I didn’t know how. I lived a life where there was no promise you’d be alive the next day, and I was tired of it. I didn’t want to sleep anymore in laundromats and cars. I didn’t want my daughters to be ashamed of me. But I didn’t have my GED. I didn’t have a job. I desperately needed help. I wanted to turn my life around so my daughters would be proud to say, “That’s my father.”

My Name Was is a work-in-progress project sharing the stories people like Francisco, introducing the formerly incarcerated as they come home and re-enter society.

Click HERE to view Chapter 1 of the Roger story