H.O.M.E.’s Preston Crow Sees Redemption, Time Served

For the first time since he was 18 years old, House of Mercy director Preston Crow is free from probation—and he celebrated the milestone Friday, Aug. 22, surrounded by friends, supporters, and the men and women he serves at his Christian-based rehabilitation facility in Olney.

The House of Mercy cafeteria was decorated for the occasion, with a banner strung across the room that read: “Time Served.” Guests shared a meal, swapped stories, and congratulated Mr. Crow on reaching a turning point in a life once marked by prison sentences and addiction, but now defined by service, faith, and leadership.

Mr. Crow spent decades cycling in and out of the Texas prison system. In 1999, he was sentenced to 25 years for drug manufacturing and served a little more than seven years before being paroled. While incarcerated, he began reading the Bible for himself, discovering a personal faith that would eventually lead him to found the House of Mercy in 2017.

“When I got out, I knew I needed accountability because I didn’t trust myself,” he said. He surrounded himself with mentors who guided him in those early years and steered him toward ministry opportunities. “I practiced what God was saying to me, not dreams, not clichés—just His Word. I found I had a relationship with Him instead of just a membership.”

That decision, Mr. Crow said, eventually led him to Olney, where he and his wife, Trena, partnered with local pastors and donors to open House of Mercy Enterprises in a vacant nursing home building. The facility has since grown into a cornerstone of rehabilitation in Young County, offering yearlong programs rooted in biblical teaching, accountability, and community support.

At Friday’s celebration, Mr. Crow reflected on the journey that brought him here. “It’s like a celebration of something I’ve never been to before,” he said. “It’s unlike a birthday or anything like that. It’s a one-time event in my life—and it happened because one day I made the decision that God is first.”

For Mr. Crow, the milestone is not an ending but a new beginning. “The road is rough,” he said, “but the fact of the matter is God doesn’t change you overnight. He does it on the way.”