Meet Cory

Cory grew up surrounded by trauma and addiction. His father and uncles struggled with heroin, and by age 20, Cory was battling meth addiction and deeply involved in a criminal lifestyle. For years, violence and addiction became the ways he coped with pain he didn’t yet know how to understand.

Today, Cory’s life looks very different. He has been home from incarceration for two years and has spent nearly that entire time with Project Kinship—years he describes as the best of his life.

Cory came to Project Kinship determined to help others facing the struggles he once knew firsthand: addiction, criminality, and gang involvement. By sharing his own story, he offers something powerful—understanding without judgment and support grounded in lived experience.

His message to anyone struggling is simple: don’t give up hope. Real support, he believes, means walking alongside someone—not leading them or pushing them from behind, but staying beside them through every step of the journey.

Cory encourages others to hold close the people who genuinely care for them and, most importantly, to find their “why”—whether it’s their children, family, a partner, or a purpose that gives them something to fight for.

“Find your reason. Find your who.” For Cory, that is where the climb toward a better life begins.