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May 1998
Dear Special Friend of Damascus Way:
Greg spent seven days in a coma, and woke up in a prison hospital with no memory of his suicide attempt. A prison worker who witnessed the event said that Greg had been dead, not breathing and with no pulse, when the guards cut him down. Greg remembers the day at age seven that his dad died of a heroin overdose in the family's home. His father was a World War II veteran and a man Greg genuinely admired. After his father's death his mother became an abusive drinker. He and his siblings lived in fear every day. Greg said his mom would get angry and kick all the kids out of the house and tell them to stay out. They would hide in the garage for hours to wait for an opportunity to sneak back in and go to bed. One day when he was 15 his mom became very drunk and extremely angry. She told Greg to "get out and stay out" one too many times. Greg left his home with only the clothes he wore and went to a Greyhound bus station where he got on an unwatched bus and hid under the back seat. After a very long trip he found himself in Los Angeles, California. Greg did whatever it took to stay alive in California, from eating out of garbage cans to stealing anything unguarded. He finally ended up in prison for eight months for auto theft. When he was released he literally walked out of Los Angeles and ended up in Arizona where he worked in a lemon factory. By now Greg was 18 years old and starting to think about home. He called an uncle in Minneapolis who told him he had better come home because his mom and everyone were extremely upset at his disappearance. He traveled to Minneapolis but within a few days was in trouble with law again and sent to prison. Only 18 years old, Greg was already a two-time loser. By 1998 Greg had been to prison five times plus time spent in jails and the workhouse, consuming 19 of his 37 years. Recurring convictions usually involved burglary and simple robbery. After his failed suicide attempt, Greg turned to Jesus for salvation. His reasoning had told him that he had spent his life hurting others and himself and now he had to go to Someone with the power to help him change. Today Greg, currently at Damascus Way, is a man full of faith in Christ and great hope for a wonderful future. Please pray for Greg and all the men who come to Damascus Way on their way back into the mainstream of society. We are in real need of your financial support as we head into the summer months. Thank you in advance for your prayer and gifts to the ministry.
Rev. Dick Harden, Director Damascus Way Reentry Center Inc.
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Early in 1994,
after spending 15 of his 33 years behind bars, Greg Clemens decided to end his life by
hanging himself in his cell at Minnesota's Stillwater State Prison. A guard distributing
bread saw his lifeless body and sounded the alarm. The lieutenant on duty refused to give
up on Greg and continued administering CPR even though it appeared he was not going to
revive.