When 28-year-old Rob Winslow began attending Trinity Evangelical Church in Peterborough, he soon noticed pictures of an orphanage in South Africa. Although he was never homeless, Winslow was quick to recognize the look of despair in many of the children’s faces.

When the opportunity opened to become part of a summer mission to Uzwelo Rural Orphan Care in Piet Relief, South Africa, the former teen drug addict knew it was time to make a difference.

Winslow said he was surprised when church members suggested he become part of the mission’s team, considering he had a past.

“Coming from the lifestyle I lived, they were so welcoming to me,” said Winslow on Wednesday. “They told me, you can go on this mission trip. You can come with us.”

The concept surprised Winslow, who was well on his way to living a life of addiction before he even entered high school. “I was incomplete and I was empty. The only gratification I could find was drinking and indulging in drugs. I was 13.”

While Winslow was able to hide his secret lifestyle from his family and friends throughout his high school years, his dark side slowly became evident to everyone. “I was the clean cut kind of good guy on the outside, during the day, and a complete train wreck at night. There were two different worlds in me, I couldn’t find the balance.”

Winslow said it all came tumbling down when he turned 19. “I had a really big fall from all the partying. I hit a really big bout of depression. It was horrible,” he said.

It wasn’t long before Winslow slowly began to add prescription medicines to his list of addictions. By the time he had entered his 20s, he was living the life of a drug addict. “I would get a job, do all right for a while, then lose the job,” he said. “It was a never-ending cycle that went on and on.”

Then Winslow overdosed on Friday the 13th in October 2006. It resulted in a near fatal car accident. Little did Winslow know at the time, but the car accident was the beginning of the end of his drug-induced life.

“I was on life support and had to be revived four times. It was a pretty powerful moving experience,” said Winslow. Desperate to find relief, Winslow soon began attending a men’s Bible study. “I was trying to find something,” he said. “I was really broken.”

Winslow said he made a single request to God throughout the time he attended the Bible study. “I was looking for a miraculous sign,” he said. “A way for him to prove he was real.”

The next morning after the last Bible study was held, Winslow got the sign. The date was Friday the 13th, June 2008.

According to Winslow, he awoke suddenly that Friday morning because a book cover fell off a roommate’s book and landed on his bed. The name of the book was, ‘Lord, Save Me from Myself’ by Jon Foreman.

“It’s the story of a recovering alcoholic and drug user who had found the Lord,” said Winslow.

The irony was not loss on Winslow. “That book is almost my life story,” said Winslow.

When Winslow goes to South Africa the week of July 18th, he and 13 other local residents will spend their days coordinating events and games for the children in the orphanage, while promoting his religion.

The group has planned several fundraising events to help ease the cost of missions trip, including a benefit concert to be held May 15 at 7 p.m., at Heberton Hall in Keene. Winslow said Mattie McGrail will be headlining, as well as Ken Sheldon from Frost Heaves. For more information on the concert or the missions trip to South Africa, visit the website www.trinitytrip2010.blogspot.com.