Alphonso Prince

I was born into a poverty-stricken family with no father and a mother on drugs. Forced to grow up sooner than anticipated, I had to endure the hard times of life. I was smoking weed and drinking at the age of 5 with my mother. I was molested and introduced to sex at the age of 6 by my cousin. I would collect cans, sell old pop bottles, went swimming for lost golf balls, catch and sell crayfishes, steal and even beg for food just to feed my brother and two sisters. I learned how to cook at the age of four not because I wanted to but because I had to. At the age of 8 my life changed forever, we were split up and placed in a foster home. That's when my life really started, I've dealt with the abandonment of both parents, I've endured an abusive foster mother, I've survived racism in college, I was homeless, I've survived a mild heart attack, I failed in college, I spent three weeks in jail, I became a chef, an author, a Christian, a father, a husband but more importantly I became a man. My life is a living testimony of about how not to give up in pursuit of your dream. I had every reason to fail or not even try, but I didn't because of the grace and love of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is my story of courage and perseverance of how you can be what ever you chose to be despite the situation you were born into.