My name is Cody Tucker and I am 23 years old. I was born and raised in Santa Maria. I was a good athlete in high school, but I began to drink and party. This caused me to lose sight of what is important in life. After high school I completed two years at Allan Hancock College and got my welding and machinist certificates. After that I began to work for the same company as my father.

I started off in the oilfields as a Roustabout and after two years worked my way up to lead equipment operator. I also worked on offshore oil rigs as a Rope access technician. But my drinking never went away. I got two DUI’s when I was eighteen years old; one of them was a felony DUI because I rolled my jeep off the Colson Canyon Road. Thankfully no one was hurt, except me, in a lot of ways! I have been on probation for almost five years now. Then I made a mistake and violated my probation by being in a bar one night, so I faced either doing jail time or join a recovery program. I’m so glad I was able to join the Rescue Mission Alliance Central Coast’s Life Recovery Program.

I realized I was trying to stop drinking on my own, but it wasn’t working. I also realized that I was drinking to drown some hurts and lies I was carrying on the inside. I discovered that God wasn’t mad at me, He had been waiting all this time for me to turn to Him. Like the bumper sticker says, “God allows U-turns.”

God has helped me restore relationship with my family. I bring my little brother to church with me on Sundays, and I have an opportunity to return to work. I am so grateful, God has me on a new path altogether.  ~ Cody