Page 124 - South Mississippi Living - December, 2025

THE INVITATION
How Giving Transforms
How Giving Transforms
“Lord, I pray that these cottages are a blessing to the men who come after us. May they find victory in You.”
That was the prayer in 2003 when Home of Grace opened its first two new cottages. Built on higher ground, they marked the first step out of a flood zone and into a future of safety and hope. Clients and volunteers built side by side, knowing others would one day sleep in those rooms, praying for life change.
Today, the men’s campus stands as
a small community of cottages and classrooms—“like a junior college for second chances,” one staffer says. The history of Home of Grace is a history of changed lives—of men and women finding freedom, and of supporters whose generosity made it possible.
Carl Crawford: Lifting the Ground Beneath Our Feet
In 1999, Gulf Coast entrepreneur Carl Crawford was asked to help solve a problem: the men’s campus sat in a flood zone. To protect the ministry for generations, client dorms needed to be moved to higher ground.
Carl said yes—decisively—funding
the architectural work, site prep, dirt, and utilities for a new location. Out of that groundwork rose a 16-man cottage. Within two years, six more cottages followed. By 2009, the administration building with cafeteria, classrooms, and counseling offices stood completed.
Carl’s investment didn’t just move buildings; it moved the mission uphill— literally and spiritually. His “why” was simple: a friend asked and the need was
urgent. If you hear him tell it today, he just shrugs and says, “I wanted to invest in something that lasts.”
Dub Herring: A Builder of People Before he was “Paw-Paw” from the TV
ads, Dub Herring was an entrepreneur with a habit of lifting others as he climbed, first in car dealerships, then through Paw-Paw’s Camper City, and across countless community projects.
At Home of Grace, Dub’s influence spans nearly six decades. In 2003,
he provided one of the major seed
gifts to build two 16-man cottages. Overnight, those gifts opened 32 new beds for men in crisis and signaled to the community—it’s time to build.
Every year following, Dub has led a revival on campus, communicating a simple, joyful challenge: to draw near to Christ and to go make a difference with your life.
One man at a revival was Butch Oustalet. Butch left and became a decades-long supporter himself. The builder of people had built another giver.
Butch Oustalet: A Guiding Star If you live on the Coast, you know
the Oustalet name. Decades of honest work in local auto dealerships and a reputation for community-minded generosity, Butch’s family legacy stretches back to the 1960s.
Butch first visited Home of Grace because of Dub’s invitation. What he experienced captured his heart: men and women in the rubble of addiction meeting Jesus. For over 30 years now, Butch has sponsored scholarship beds,
purchased needed equipment, and even funded a 16-man cottage himself.
“Home of Grace is one of the
most important organizations in our community,” he said. “That’s why I will continue to support this proud institution while they change lives for the better.”
Butch’s steadfast advocacy has inspired friends and neighbors to join him— proof that generosity multiplies when one friend brings another to see what God is doing.
How Giving Changes the Giver
Ask Carl, Dub, or Butch, and they’ll tell you the same thing: giving changes you. In every case, their gifts multiplied into stories and their stories multiplied givers.
And then there’s Danny Leblanc, a Home of Grace alumnus who remained a dedicated supporter until he passed away last year. For 20 years, he made a weekly gift, even when his business faced difficulties and he was without income.
He would often say, “Josh, you have 35,000 alumni. If each one sent you a dollar a month, you would never have financial need, would you?”
Every year, thousands of families
on the Gulf Coast are touched by addiction. It’s Home of Grace’s goal to serve men and women in their time of deepest need. But we need your help.
Your generosity doesn’t just change one life. It strengthens the whole Gulf Coast by stopping the generational impact of addiction.
124 | December 2025
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