"I got to see him while he was in jail, but I never saw him once when he went to prison," Josh Rakestraw remembers of his father, David.

Shackled by addiction, David knew his life was out of control. He just couldn't put the bottle down, and it encouraged his volatile temper. One day someone "laid a hand" on his children's mother and David retaliated. He went to prison for aggravated assault and spent three years behind bars at three different facilities.

While David was away, Josh and Samatha's mom was caught in her own battle with addiction. She and the children moved from one Missouri shelter to the next. They lost all contact with David.

Three years is a long time in the life of a child, and for Samatha, it was just easier to let her father slip from her memory. He probably forgot about me anyway, she often thought.

"I got to see [my dad]
while he was in jail,
but I never saw him once
when he went to prison."
Josh Rakestraw

"I kept a journal for three years.
I wrote down how much I loved [my kids]
and how much the Lord loved them."
David Rakestraw

"Angel Tree taught me about Christ!
He is my Savior and He died on the cross for me!
He changed my life for the better."
Samatha Rakestraw

Now in their early teens, Josh and Samatha live with David in Bethany, Missouri. They attend church together and enjoy being a family again. Ask about their favorite memory since David was released, and they'll tell you: Before a tearful crowd of worshipers at their church, all three were baptized.

David and his kids have just one wish left—that the children's mother will join them as a follower of Christ. She was recently sent to prison because of a drug conviction and was released to a halfway house.

"I think the Lord has a hold of her too," David shares.

Samatha is claiming the promise of Acts 16:31, where Paul and Silas told the Philippian jailer, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household." She has childlike faith that God can deliver on that promise. She believes it’s only a matter of time. Even in the waiting, she is thankful that God has mended her family and restored hope where it was lost.

"[Angel Tree] is an awesome program," says David. "It does change lives. Not just for the moment, but it changed my life and the rest of my kids' lives."