CRI Coordinator & Volunteer in Corrections
I was born in La Paz, Bolivia, in the mid-seventies, and our family immigrated to the US in 1987. We moved to Milwaukee, WI, where I completed High School and Engineering school at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. I have been married to my partner and best friend, Amanda, since 1993. We are proud parents of two boys, Marcelo and Manny Estrada.
I am currently the Quality Manager at Northstar Battery Co. It is a growing manufacturing company headquartered in Springfield, MO.
I grew up in the church and my parents were very dedicated to God. However, as a teenager I never felt that encounter. I continued to live based on my own desires and needs and would only seek God when I needed something or was in trouble. I was exposed to gangs and drugs early on. Even though I wasn’t deep into either, most of my friends were. I met my wife Amanda in 2003, my last year in high school. As a young couple, we partied a lot and a year later, we got pregnant. We decided to get married and it was because of my marriage and our soon-to-come son that I was determined to avoid getting in trouble and start my college career. Looking back, it was God that helped me realize that it was the only way that I could provide for my young family. We were blessed with a good career following college, but we moved to different cities every 3-4 years.
It wasn’t until early 2004 that I truly gave my life to Jesus. We lived in McAllen, TX, at the time, and I had the privilege of attending a small Baptist church that required a lot of dedication and hard work. It was then that I realized that being a Christian is not just about my needs. We must continue to seek His will by doing for others as Jesus did.
As a member of Ridgecrest Baptist Church, in Springfield, MO, I signed up to volunteer at Ozark Correctional Center in Fordland, MO, in March 2007. The program was only five months old at the time. It didn’t take long to know that this was the area that I wanted to invest my time and efforts.
The reason that I dedicate my time to Celebrate Recovery Inside is because of my background and my desire to give back. CR was established for people that want to turn their life around and overcome a bad habit or addiction. We sponsor this program so that inmates that are serious about change have an opportunity through this Christian based system. I have witnessed men change from bitterness to hopefulness. I have also witnessed first-hand the success of others that graduate from the program and become successful group leaders outside of prison. Many have been reunited to families that lost all hope for their loved one. It is because of these great testimonies that I attend CRI every week and open the chapel for the Large Group Meeting on Friday nights.