“I felt that I was a good kid doing bad stuff.”

Javier Gonzales, a former gangster and drug dealer from Chicago, recounts his story on how he escaped violence and drugs in his presentation, “Release Me.” The presentation was hosted by Hearts to Offer (H2O), a Christian club at Central, and took place on March 7 and 9 during lunch periods.

Gonzales grew up going to church with his family, but being surrounded by gang members was a constant in his life.

“At 9 years old I was already being affected by this,” Gonzales said. “[…] I became a person that I wasn’t. I was loved, I was a good kid and I wasn’t violent, but I became a person who was violent, jealous and fighting at my school.”

Gonzales became a part of a gang when he was about 15 years old, but his life changed when he had a “paranormal experience” one night while under the influence of Psilocybin mushrooms. He reflected back on what he took away from that experience to the Central students in the Little Theatre.

“Today is a sunny day, and if someone raped someone last night or killed someone or molested a child, they will wake up to the same sunny day that we woke up to,” Gonzales said. “That’s called God’s mercy. That’s called that there is another opportunity for you, it’s not over and that there is a chance to repent and ask for forgiveness for what you have done.”

H2O was created over a decade ago and is sponsored by social science teacher Randy Smith, but this new “outreach event” has never been offered before.

“[This club] is an opportunity for Christians to come together as students, who are maybe coming from a variety of church settings, but have the opportunity to [study] the Bible and apply it to their lives, pray together and worship together,” Smith said.

Smith’s primary role as the sponsor is to direct the club members to what they can and cannot do legally and help them accomplish their goals.

Shannon Reed, a H2O member and senior, played a role in planning the presentation.

“We wanted to reach out to the greater student body to let someone know that there are people that care about you,” Reed said. “A lot of people struggle with depression, anxiety and feeling alone, and if we can let someone know that they are not alone and that people care about them then I have done my job.”

Reed hopes that H2O will continue to connect with others at Central after she graduates.