In this episode, Frank Schaeffer speaks with Dr. Terence Lester, PhD about his journey from hardship to scholarship, and the deeper work of becoming a healing presence for your children.
They discuss trauma, race, poverty, and faith, along with Lester’s Project Open Fridge and his commitment to addressing food insecurity.
The conversation moves beyond biography into something more personal. What do we carry from our past, and what do we choose not to pass on?
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Dr. Terence Lester is a storyteller, public scholar, speaker, community activist, and author.
He is the Founder and Executive Director of Love Beyond Walls, a nonprofit organization focused on raising awareness about poverty and homelessness and on community mobilization. Additionally, he serves as the Director of Public Policy and Social Change and as a professor at Simmons College of Kentucky (HBCU). He received his PhD with a concentration in Public Policy and Social Change from Union Institute and University.
At the age of sixteen, Terence was a high-school dropout and a member of a gang. A rebellious teen, he lived on the streets and even attempted to take his own life. At twenty, he was arrested. In jail, he met a man who talked to him about life decisions. It was the first time he had ever heard the good news. By the start of the following year, he was submitting to a call to share his testimony to change the lives of others.
Three ideals drive Terence: (1) anyone can make a difference, (2) we don’t live forever, (3) and it’s worth dedicating one’s life to ensuring no one feels invisible.