To Point the Way

Robbie, now 29, also leads a small group of high school guys from the youth group at Community Heights, and still finds time to spend time with five men he considers his own mentors.

"I have so many because I need so many," Robbie said, only half joking. Right after Robbie left prison, his Prison Fellowship mentor, John Craun, met with him weekly to talk about faith, marriage, parenting, just about anything. Over the years, John watched Robbie not only stay out of prison, but also cling to his new life with every ounce of strength.

"He's one of those people who grabbed a hold of it and wouldn't let go," Craun said.

Craun connected Robbie with Jon Croce, a friend from Community Heights, who helped Robbie get the job at Vermeer and drove him to work for the first few months. Over the past few years, Croce has walked Robbie through custody struggles with nine-year-old Diamond, a repeated source of frustration for Robbie. Although Robbie had no contact with Diamond from the time she was three months to five years old, he recently gained joint-custody of her.

"Now she's calling me, asking for help with her spelling words," he said. "Now she tells me she loves me when we hang out. That's a prayer being answered."

Another prayer was answered when Robbie's mom, Brinda, recently moved from Waterloo to Des Moines, and away from "the hood." Over the past five years since the funeral, Brinda has watched in wonder as Robbie has continued to move in a different direction than her other five children—all of whom have spent time in jail or prison and are still struggling to find their footing.

She said, "The way his life was, I never thought he'd change, but he did . . . I wish they would turn around like he did."

As Robbie tells his story, it's as if he's gazing at his own transformation, turning it over in his hands, amazed by its growing familiarity.

"I have my days, but every day I strive to be more like Christ. Every day I strive to have more integrity."

It will never bring Robquez back, but he knows it will give him the courage to be a good father to Diamond, a devoted husband to Sarah, and a dear friend and mentor to those who look to him to point the way to their own transformation.