At 13, Tony Hoang escaped the loneliness and domestic violence of his home life and joined one of the most notorious crime gangs in Cabramatta, finding himself jailed a year later. Tony continued to deal drugs when he was released. It seemed at the time that the gang gave him a sense of belonging and self-importance. At the age of 16, he faced the harsh reality of this lifestyle by losing a close friend to a drug overdose, and almost gunned down at 19 years old.
"Things just went from bad to worse, and, by the age of 21, I had six friends dead." But after he suffered a heroin overdose, he said he was ready to leave a life of gangs, drugs and jail behind.

So he returned to the church he had attended as a young child.

"I cried, a broken man. I said God, if you're somewhere out there, make yourself real to me. Please just give me a sign or something.

"The next day, I was walking through Cabramatta and Potters House Christian Church Fairfield were handing out leaflets, telling people about God and a man gave me a flyer, and the flyer read, 'if you're looking for a sign from God, here it is'."

That was 12 years ago. Now, he spends his time mentoring others who are experiencing a similar ordeal.

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