Just a Call Away
Author, Mia Fenner | 8/08/2022 - Updated | 06/30/2023
UPDATE! We are thrilled to share that we recently heard from Wayman’s mom, Martha with the following update:
“My son, Wayman, reconnected with me in August 2022, successfully completed a three-month rehab program, and celebrated 10 months of sobriety in June 2023! He is currently going to school full time and lives in a townhouse near me in Escondido, California”.
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In 2007, Martha Lawrence lost contact with her son Wayman for the first time. Although the pair eventually reconnected in 2009, this short-lived visit was only the beginning of their uphill journey to stay connected.
Things took a positive turn three years later when Martha received a call from Wayman and successfully convinced him to come home. Unfortunately, their reconnection was not as positive as Martha had hoped. Instead, she saw firsthand a decline in Wayman’s mental health and felt that many of his behaviors presented as schizophrenia. Even with Martha’s best efforts to empathize and understand, Wayman’s constant struggle with hearing voices made him very agitated and within two weeks he left home, frustrated.
After losing contact again, Martha was even more concerned for her son’s well-being. Despite her concerns, in the eyes of the law, Wayman was an adult and according to police posed no direct threat to himself or others. Therefore, Martha had little to no legal power to help and try to find him again. Instead, her only option was to keep an open mind that somehow, they could meet again. She wished for a miracle that would finally let her help the most important person in her life.
In January of 2022, Martha’s prayers were answered by an unexpected message left on her answering machine. The woman on the phone was Miracle Message volunteer, Lindsay Pfeiffer who explained Wayman was alive and actively looking for Martha. Before Lindsay could end the message, Martha grabbed the phone urgently, asking in awe “He’s alive? My son is alive?” (Martha). Lindsay enthusiastically confirmed this and instantaneously, Martha broke into tears with the news.
Within their phone call, Lindsay informed Martha that Wayman was unhoused in San Francisco and had been living without a phone. Martha also learned that her son never actually suffered from schizophrenia. Instead, his erratic behavior had been a product of crystal meth use. However, after meeting Lindsay, Wayman got sober and focused on maintaining this sobriety.
Above is the first photo Martha received of her son after ten years spent apart.
After updating Martha on everything, Lindsay helped the two reconnect and got Wayman a cell phone so Martha and her son could finally talk consistently. Eventually, in March 2022, Martha flew out to see her son and meet the woman who made all of her dreams come true.
Lindsay, Martha, and Wayman sharing Thai food in San Francisco.
By April, Wayman was in permanent housing and had a job working for a city contracting company. Martha and her son were in a great place and face-timed every week. However, the reality is that substance abuse and addiction are both extremely difficult to overcome. A few months later, Wayman had relapsed and once again disappeared.
Despite her current separation from Wayman, Martha truly believes this is not the end of her relationship with her son. In fact, Martha is beyond grateful to Lindsay and Miracle Messages for the few months she was able to spend with Wayman. Not only was she able to meet with him in person, but Martha explains she feels at peace knowing that he never suffered from Schizophrenia and this experience has only reaffirmed her faith in an eventual future together.
