My heart was touched by the Dec. 24 front-page story (Christmas in jail).

I grew up a child of an alcoholic and left home when I was only 15. As a rebellious young man, I began a journey that turned out to be one incredible and unforgettable experience. I was addicted to drugs and alcohol. I often times found myself in rehab and detox clinics, eating in soup kitchens, sleeping in homeless missions and seeking shelter in local laundromats in order to keep warm.

It wasn’t long before I turned to a life of crime that eventually ended me up in jail. It was one of the best things that could have ever happened to me. It was there, believe it or not, I felt love.

Pastor Bob Giguere, the jail’s chaplain, looked past the prisoner and saw the potential and possibilities of my future. It didn’t stop there. Capt. John Lebel showed me compassion and always treated me with dignity. Mr. Anctil, the jail’s chef, took me aside and taught me to cook institutional-style food.

Fourteen years later as a result of their kindness, I am an ordained Oneness Pentecostal minister and teach values and self-respect to inner-city children through the ministry of the Jesus Party. I have also been employed as an institutional cook at Intown Manor since my release. There really are angels in jail.

Rev. Douglas Taylor, Lewiston