Her Story Speaks

Kerry Banzet has been married to her husband, Justin, for 15 years and is a stay at home/homeschool mom to her two sons Hank, 13 and Ty, 11. Kerry didn’t grow up with missions or a nonprofit in her future but God had other plans. In 2015 Kerry took a mission trip with 6 other women to Uganda to serve with a focus was on orphan care. This trip is where her focus shifted from orphan care to orphan prevention after learning that many children in institutions have family, specifically single mothers. These mothers place their children in the care of orphanages when they aren’t able to provide adequate care.  When she returned home from this trip God kept these women on her heart. What if they had income generating activities and could provide for their children, then they could keep them at home.

Danny Baideme was raised to be a con and thief by her father and had become a monster to anyone around her.  At 22 years old she learned about Gods grace and the message of salvation. Now her and her family of four reach out to the lost and the brokenhearted through street ministry. Her story shines light on the lost sheep and what God looks like from their perspective. She shares her story to encourage you to never lose hope.

Sophia Carbajal served a 5 year sentence at Mabel Bassett Correctional Center. While in prison, she surrendered her life to the Lord. She was released from prison two years ago. Instead of returning home to her former way of life, she has successfully transitioned from prison to life in Claremore, OK due to His House Ministries. Sophia has managed one of His House homes and is currently General Manager of She Brews Coffee House, overseeing operations of two coffee shops. Since her release from prison, Sophia's relationship with her daughter has been restored and her daughter has overcome her addiction.

Jamie Enyart is a wife of 17 years and busy mom to six kids. She is on staff at theChurch.at where she helps lead the Adopt(ed) Ministry, focusing on foster care and adoption education. This is her story of how God unexpectedly grew her family from 4 to 8 and all the crazy twists and turns along the way. Jamie shares the struggles and joys she and her family walked through when they stepped out in faith and answered the call to adopt.

Christy Rowden has been married to her husband, Steve, for 26 years. They have two teenage daughters - Kenzie, 18 and Abby, 16. They never considered adoption for their family until Christy‘s first trip to Uganda in 2010. After seeing the orphan crisis first hand, she felt a very strong call from God to adopt from Uganda. They brought home their son, Asher, in 2013 when he was two years old. Three years later they felt the call to adopt again and brought home their daughter, Mercy, at the age of three. Their family has lived in Owasso for 20 years now and serving in justice ministries has become their passion.

Jamie Ivey is a podcaster, author, and speaker from Austin, Texas. She is the proud mama to four kids and the wife to Aaron, worship pastor of The Austin Stone Community Church. Jamie loves to encourage women to passionately follow Jesus through any stage of life. She does this through writing and her weekly podcast, The Happy Hour with Jamie Ivey. Jamie's debut book "If You Only Knew: My Unlikely, Unavoidable Story of Becoming Free," released in January 2018, and available at this link.

Rhonda Bear spent years running from police. Wanted on drug charges in several states, Rhonda could not put down her addiction, even when threatened with the loss of her children. But behind bars, she renewed her commitment to Christ, completed drug counseling, and met a volunteer who invited her to participate in a Stand in the Gap spiritual family. Rhonda regained custody of her children and is now an attentive and involved mother and grandmother.

Today, Rhonda is back in prison. But this time, she is a Department of Corrections-approved volunteer, teaching Stand in the Gap’s Women in Transition curriculum to female inmates across the state of Oklahoma. Upon her students’ release, Rhonda matches them with transitional living facilities and pairs women with Stand in the Gap small groups of mentors. Rhonda leads a team of Women in Transition course facilitators and volunteers who work hard to empower women to live healthy, whole lives beyond bars.

In addition to her work at Stand in the Gap, Rhonda is also the founder of SheBrews Coffee House in Claremore, OK.  SheBrews provides opportunities for employment  for women reentering into society after being released from prison. Rhonda explains that She Brews Coffee House is "intended to give back what was given to me.  I feel like people invested in me, and now what I tell them all the time is it's earning interest, because I am now investing in the lives of other women."

Rhonda also founded and directs  His House Outreach Ministries, a faith-based transitional home in Claremore.  Women who are regaining their lives at His House are given the opportunity to work at She Brews to gain responsibility, leadership, trustworthiness, and social skills. Her life experiences allow her to relate to incarcerated women in a way that few other volunteers can.

Rhonda graduated from Northeastern State University with a bachelor’s degree in social work. She has been honored and recognized as “Volunteer of the Year” by Eddie Warrior Correctional Center, as one of the YWCA’s “Women of the Year” and named one of six “Leading Ladies of Claremore” by the Claremore Chamber of Commerce. For women in prison, Rhonda’s story opens the door to immeasurable hope.

Stasi Eldredge is a New York Times bestselling author, and her books have sold nearly 3 million copies and changed women's lives all over the world. Her passion is to see lives transformed by the beauty of the gospel and we are excited to share her story of becoming herself through her journey of past struggles and addictions.

This week, we share 'Gabby's' story. The story of a woman who felt called to the mission field at a young age but thought her dreams were all but over when she found herself feeling trapped in an abusive marriage for years. God had other plans though to make her dreams as a missionary reality. Gabby's story is one of God using all things for His glory for those who trust and believe in Him.

In this episode of the Her Story Speaks podcast, April shares her story about living a life filled with abuse, hurts and addictions. April opens up about seeking worldly pleasures to fill her heart instead of Jesus. She shares how her life was transformed when she hit an all time low and finally gave her heart to Jesus.