User:JaredBallenger

Billy Ballenger was born in Franklin, Indiana. He spent the majority of his young life fighting authority and digging himself into a deep pit without the prospect of escape. His birth parents relatively absent from his life, a troubled childhood began. Being bullied at school on an almost daily basis cut Billy's fuse short and he began to push back, becoming violent and disorderly. Early uses of drugs and alcohol propelled him into a downward spiral that eventually led to him buying and selling drugs. As a teenager, he began to systematically dismantle his life piece by piece. Running away from home was the least extreme thing he did during this season of his life. His exodus from the safety of his adoptive parents and into a rebellious environment eventually lead him to juvenile placement at White's Residential and Family Services in Wabash Indiana. It was at Whites where Billy would meet his future wife, Jodie. Both were leading unhealthy lives stacked against the law and eventually fell in love. By age 18, Billy Ballenger was a teenage father and husband sprinting down a corrupt path. He was involved in the teenage party lifestyle, dangerous crimes, and violence.

On September 12, 1988, Billy's lifestyle came to an abrupt end. He and his new wife Jodie had just used the last of their stash of drugs and Billy thought a bath sounded like a good idea. But instead of a relaxing soak, what Billy got was an unwelcome surprise. A SWAT team raided his and Jodie's home, having been dispatched to apprehend Billy for his involvement in the recent violence and burglaries in the area. Still soaking wet, Billy was grabbed and thrown against the wall with the barrel of a 12-gauge pump shotgun pressed against his head. Billy and Jodie were arrested and their young 9 month old daughter Mindy was taken from them. The dismantling of his life was complete. Separated from his wife and his daughter taken from him, Billy would now be looking at the remnants of a wasted life from behind the bars of 4 different prisons. Billy and Jodie were sentenced to 6 years each in the Indiana Department of Corrections.

Faced with the pieces of his life strewn out before him, Billy made a promise to change. Vowing to clean up, he tried tirelessly to gain freedom from prison for himself and Jodie. After another failure in along string of legal rejections, a judge told Billy to stop asking to get out of prison early. Amazingly, less than 2 months after the Ballengers were told by the court to stop wasting their time trying to get an early release, the judge had a sudden, unexplainable change of heart. Both Billy and Jodie were released from prison one year early. What's more, their daughter Mindy was returned to them with no strings attached. It was nothing less than a modern day miracle. And the Ballengers stood fast to the vow Billy made in prison.

Billy finds purpose in life by helping young people who have dug themselves into the same hopeless pit he found himself in. With a vision for helping others get off drugs and alcohol, Billy shares his story through his many speaking opportunities.

He also finds ways of sharing hope through his music. As a singer-songwriter Billy Ballenger's passion for music came as a young boy living in Taylorsville, Indiana in the late 1970's. It was there he remembers playing old Beatles and Beach Boys records while he slept in order to memorize the lyrics and be able to sing them on his own. Several years after Billy was released from prison his music finally developed into a professional career and has led to performances Internationally in China, Russia, the United States and on international television. This has allowed Billy to share his story with millions of people around the world.

After the release of several CDs his passions eventually came to a head and combined into an organization now called "Break the Grey". Break the Grey tours public schools providing character development assemblies, culminating in high-energy pop/rock concert productions sponsored by local communities wanting to bring hope to today's youth. Since it's beginning in 2005 BTG has exploded. It's grown exponentially, developing a national reach, with an influence across the United States. In 2010, Break the Grey launched an internship program, training young people on how to guide their peers toward a healthier style of living.

Billy Ballenger hasn't had a drop of alcohol or touched an illegal drug since his arrest in 1988. His relationship with his wife is stronger than ever before. His organization is thriving and his music is finding ever-growing success. But more than any of this, Billy is rewarded most when a student comes to him and says, "Thank you for changing my life." And it's this that Billy hopes to hear from every young person searching for help in the public schools all across America.