Testimony of Henry Beaufort

I Can’t Let Twyla Down.

His speech is a little slow and he walks with difficulty. Some days he’ll wear a patch over his bad eye, but Henry Beaufort now has his focus on Jesus.

For Henry, the event that turned him around was the death of his beloved wife, Twyla. Twyla stuck by Henry throughout all his years of drinking and gambling. When she was diagnosed with terminal cancer, Henry and his wife moved to Durham. Doctors in Philadelphia had given her only 3 weeks to live. With the treatment she received at Duke Medical Center, Twyla lived for 6 months. On her deathbed, she begged Henry to quit his drinking and gambling. She even told him he could go to the Rescue Mission if he needed help.

Shortly after her passing, Henry was still drinking and the words of his dear wife came back to him; "Henry, please stop". He knew it would take a good support system to help him. Having received Jesus Christ as his Savior 25 years ago, Henry knew that most of all he needed to do it God’s way, so he came to the Durham Rescue Mission.

The slow speech and difficulty in walking are reminders of one of 3 terrible accidents he suffered, the last occurring in 1969. Henry will tell you, the Lord has been trying to get his attention for a long time. But now, not wanting to disappoint his Lord and wanting to honor the memory of his wife, Henry is determined to stop drinking. He has not had a drink since February. He says, "I can’t let Jesus down and I can’t let Twyla down".

Henry acknowledges his walk with Jesus has been strengthened through the Bible classes in the Victory Program. He is looking forward to graduating in a few months, but he wants to make the transition slowly. I plan to get a job and stay here for a while longer. I need to be accountable to somebody. I’ll know when I’m ready to move out.

By the way, if you were to meet Henry, you would notice a "sweet" personality. That might be from the many years he spent tempering chocolate in the candy business. More than likely however, it is because Jesus lives in his heart.