It was approximately in November of 1969 when my mom had given her life to Jesus Christ. My mom was only 26 going on 27 years old when she had five boys (Melvin, Jr., 11, Terrance 10, Rory 9, Marcus 4, and Troy 2). My mom had my older brothers before my older brother Courtney was born (1974) and before I was born (1978). My mom was married to the 3 oldest son's father from 1958-1970 but mom and her first husband was separated from 1960-1970 before they divorced. My mom would take her and her five boys to church.
Gradually when a few sets of boys got into trouble they would go to juvenile detention centers for running away from home, doing drugs when they were minors, and my mom having to go to court because her minor sons were breaking curfew to run the streets in Hartford. When Marcus and Troy were born my mom was a single mom. Mom had lived in dilapidated unfit apartments where my mom and her 5 boys were evicted because the places were roach 🪳 and rat🐀 infested because of slumlord landlords. Then mom and her five boys lived in the projects for 11 months in Bellevue Square in Hartford with her 5 boys from 1972 till 1973 and in 1974 my mom and her 5 boys one of the times stayed at the 🦩 Flamingo Inn in Hartford on the Wilson Windsor line with her five boys when she was pregnant with Courtney.
Troy at 7 started running away from home. Troy was told that he was the baby by his older brothers Melvin, Jr., Terrance, Rory, and Marcus. Troy was brought home in squad cars. My mom even got counseling for Troy and the psychologist said to my mom that the reason why Troy was running away from home so much was because Troy was jealous of Courtney and there were no father figure in Troy's life. At that time my mom had remarried and was married to my father in 1974. Courtney, the baby 🍼 at the time could have easily thought that my father was his father but my mom told Courtney that my father was not his father. My mom and my father divorced when I was 3 going on 4 in 1982.
Troy ran away from home so much that Marcus almost lost his life so many times looking for Troy on the streets in Hartford. There was a 2-year age difference between Troy and Marcus. Troy was always bigger and stronger than Marcus even though Marcus was older than Troy. Troy at 13 became unruly and my mom felt that what was best is that she send Troy to Long Lane reform school in Middletown.
Rory taught Troy how to steal when Troy was little and Troy and his girlfriend Missy at the time would escape from Long Lane and rob all the neighbors and mom's house in Hartford. Troy and his girlfriend got to the place where they were robbing mom's house so much that they would steal food out of the refrigerator while mom was at work. One time Marcus at 17 saw Troy at 15 almost lost his hand breaking in the window to rob mom while she was at work. Marcus was terrified and afraid of Troy because Troy is 6' 2" and Marcus is 5' 8." Troy learned how-to beat-up Marcus when Troy was 4 going on 5 and when Marcus was 6 going on 7. Troy one time slashed all 4 of mom's car tires.
Troy slept in so many areas where Marcus went to look for Troy in the following: The woods, bushes, dumpsters, garbage cans, floors of abandoned schools, Janitor's closets, and Troy once slept in a floor of a murder's house when Troy was only 7. Troy, Rory, and Terrance were the main ones that got into trouble. Troy kept mom praying for Troy the most because mom didn't know where Troy was for 10 years. Troy at 14 almost lost his life twice. The first time Troy almost lost his life when Troy went on a joy ride in a stolen car. Troy was going 90 miles in the car outrunning the cops. Troy crashed in the stolen car and turned over in the car 3 times with Troy upside down in the car. Troy went to the doctor and the doctor told Troy that Troy's neck was broke. My mom called the prayer tower at Full Gospel Interdenominational church in Manchester to pray for Troy because Troy was in a terrible car accident and the doctor pronounced that Troy's neck was broke. Mom and the church prayed that Troy's neck would be totally healed, and Troy's neck was normal, and all Troy had was his 2 front teeth missing and his knees was scraped with cuts from the car wreck.
Another time Troy almost lost his life at 14 was when Troy went swimming in a swimming pool. Troy jumped into the pool and Troy went down under drowning in the pool. There were no lifeguards in sight. A woman came out of nowhere and jumped into the swimming pool and pulled Troy out of the pool. The woman began to do CPR on Troy until she got a pulse. Troy was coughing and came to. It was nothing but prayer that kept Troy alive. Troy would continue to do what he did with the different influences in his life (mainly the different girlfriends and Rory) which caused Troy to do bad things like steal to do drugs. Troy was the type of person when he looked for a job, Troy would get hired on the spot. Troy would be given 2nd chances to prove he had changed and for 2 weeks, it seemed like Troy was on the right path to better himself. Troy found work when he went to Miami, FL in 1980 when he stayed with my grandparents. After 2 weeks, Troy would steal from family and he would get sent back to Hartford, CT on a plane.
In 1983, Troy decided it would be best for him if he left Hartford and go to Detroit, MI and stay with Terrance and Betty (Toni) our older brother and his wife (our sister-in-law). Troy had missed his partner in crime girlfriend Missy but thought he would start all over when Troy went to Detroit. For 2 weeks everything went really well. Terrance and Toni were talking about having Troy get his records from Hartford and move to Detroit and attend the University of Michigan like when Terrance did when he left Hartford and moved to Detroit. Well, Terrance influenced Troy to break in the house and rob Toni while Troy was in Detroit. Terrance even helped Troy rob Toni because Terrance was doing drugs, too. This really upset Toni so much what Troy did, so Toni sent Troy on a plane back to Hartford. Troy was a follower and usually that is what followers do, they follow and do what leaders tell them to do or even listen to followers like them.
Meanwhile, Troy almost lost his life at 17 going on 18. Troy was at a subway station at the Port Authority in Manhattan, NY in 1985. Troy had on a fur coat, and what they will do to people that have anything of value at the stations is steal or in Troy's case cut the fur coat off of him with Troy in it and mugged him for his fur coat. Troy was stabbed and shot at and Troy had to go to a hospital in Manhattan. Troy had to get 67 stitches for his face, Troy had a big chunk of his arm cut from the knife wounds, and Troy was shot in the leg. A nurse was able to call my mom from the Manhattan hospital. She told my mom that Troy had been in a coma for 3 days and woke up and that Troy was mugged at the Port Authority subway station. The nurse felt that my mom needed to know even though she wasn't supposed to release that info because Troy was no longer considered a minor.
Courtney and mom went to the Manhattan hospital and Courtney located where Troy was. Me and Marcus was home. Marcus was a high school graduate, who attended San Diego school of Medicine when he enlisted in the Navy Reserves. Marcus from the training he learned doctored on Troy getting the first aid kit. Marcus took out all of the stitches in Troy's face and got big towels that were bloodied after Marcus bandaged Troy. Troy was staying with us for 2 weeks until Troy got well. Troy even had me making hamburgers and fries on my 7th birthday that same year in 1985. Me and Troy played some games of checkers. When Troy got a letter from Rory in jail, Troy went out into the streets. About a little over a month later Troy broke in the house and robbed us while we were at church. Troy left his signature YMCA on the wall in the dining room because that was where Troy was at, at the time. Troy had stolen mom's hair products, all of Marcus's clothes, and a handcrafted money bank with money in it that Courtney made for mom in school. Marcus had to go to work in his Navy uniform. Mom had to put in a police report and the police went down to the YMCA where Troy was, and they arrested Troy and Troy did jail time.
Troy was given a chance after serving jail time from 1984-1986.Troy got his GED while being locked up in Chesire in 1985. In 1987, my cousin Myra sent for Troy on a bus to stay with her in Plant City, FL. Troy was doing good for 2 weeks while working and staying with my cousin in Plant City. After 2 weeks, Troy robbed my cousin; her, and my 2 other cousins got enough money from their father (my uncle), and they all pitched in and got a bus ticket and sent Troy back to Hartford. It seemed like the 2 weeks of Troy doing good and messing up after 2 weeks was a habit Troy found himself in consistently. Troy would work but would steal to get drugs. The drug addiction and growing up in a single parent home for inner city children seemed to be a habit.
Troy would be given a 2nd chance when he stayed with Marcus in 1989 in Los Angeles, CA. For 2 weeks Troy worked and did good. Troy broke in Marcus's house and robbed Marcus. Marcus sent Troy back on a train to Hartford. Troy can honestly say that that was his worst experience being sent back. It takes approximately 2 days and 16 hours from Los Angeles to Hartford by train. Troy would leave the state again when he went to Clifton, TN. After Troy left from bootcamp in Clifton he came back to Hartford and stayed with me and my mom in Bloomfield in 1996. Troy moved to Orlando, FL in 1996, been in Orlando 27 years now and Troy is married to Paula his 2nd wife and they have been married for 20 years now. Troy went from being a wayward boy, to a car detailer, and now retired. Every parent or parents have a wayward son/sons or daughter/daughters in their family. For those parents that have prodigal sons and daughters, I hope this story encourages you. Well, that is all for free speech on all topics, till next time keep an eye out for more blogs like this. God Bless You!
Long Lane Reform School Middletown, CT
Chesire Correctional Institution Chesire, CT
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