Help Gretchen reunite with her son

Hello, my name is Sonya. I am organizing this GoFundMe on behalf of my closest friend, Gretchen Krause. If you're in my local recovery community then you probably already know her. If not, let me tell about her.

What can I say about Gretchen? She's helped me and so many others on their journey to recovery.

She’s the ball of energy you might see bouncing all about like a red headed tazmanian devil. She’s the fast talking, charmer, always extending a hand to both the newcomer and the old timer who need assistance. She’s the woman who will always pick up your phone call and drop everything for you. If you’ve been to an event in our area, a jail, a treatment center, or a marathon meeting, she is there. You literally could not escape her even if you wanted to. Her entire life is one of service. Every time I have ever heard someone ask if there are any announcements, she is promoting some commitment, event or meeting. She always has a newcomer in her car, sometimes a car full of them because she wants to help everyone. She gives selflessly, and asks for nothing in return. This is the driving factor in why I feel led to fundraise for Gretchen so she can go see her son in the UK. To someone outside of Gretchen’s life, it may not sound like a cause worthy of a fundraiser, so let me give you a little background so you can see how important this is.

Gretchen had her son, CJ when she was 20 years old. Due to choices made in her active addiction, she went to prison soon after he was born. At that time, he was raised by her mother, Sally. When she returned from prison, she was involved with her son for a few years, until her addiction took off again. At that time, her mom became CJ’s sole caregiver. Over the years, she would see him from time to time, but she was unable to stay clean long enough to be consistent. As he got older, he completely cut her out of his life. Even after being clean for over 6 years, her adult son has adamantly demanded to have no contact with her.

Gretchen has been praying for restoration and believing that God will open the door when the time is right.

Her son CJ is a world class champion weightlifter who travels all over the world for Strongman Competitions. Two years ago, he begrudgingly allowed her to show up to an event with her mom, Sally.

Since then, he has been in Europe through his Strongman sponsorships, but he has not been open to a relationship with her.

Several months ago, Gretchen’s mom, Sally, spoke to CJ. She decided to go to the UK to attend a Strongman Competition. At that time, CJ suggested that Gretchen also attend. This would be a dream come true on so many levels. Gretchen, a woman who was once confined to a 4 block radius, who has never left the east coast, who has been praying for a relationship with her son, actually getting on a plane with her 82 year old mother and flying halfway across the world to reunite with her son, who actually wants to see her? This would be a once in a lifetime opportunity for these 3 generations to take a trip, find some healing, and open doors that have been closed for over 25 years.

Despite not knowing how she could financially afford this trip, she stepped out in faith and applied for a passport. With her felonies, it was questionable. However, the passport came, and it came surprisingly quickly.

God put it on my heart to share her story so that perhaps we can help Gretchen the way she has helped so many others. If God puts it on your heart to help her, please do. Every dollar helps. Every share helps. Every prayer helps!

Thank you! God bless you all.