Ted G. Stone

[2] He graduated from Durham High School before earning his Bachelor of Arts degree from Wake Forest University in 1956.

He went on to earn a Master of Arts degree from North Carolina Central University where he wrote a two hundred page paper on the history of Durham politics for his thesis.

He published a newspaper called Chatham Life and tried his hand at real estate, insurance, putt-putt golf, and as a florist.

[7] On his release from prison, Stone refused to sit by and hope someone else would share a religious experience with people who were addicts.

[8][9] He began the Ted Stone Ministries[7] then wrote the autobiography "Somebody Special" in 1984 in which he detailed his journey from drugs to prison to a passion for helping people.

He met with former First Lady Betty Ford, and at least three governors: George W. Bush,[4] Gary Johnson, and Fife Symington.

At the June 2006 meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention in Greensboro, NC, he told missionary directors that "broken people" shouldn't be considered "second-class citizens in the family of God.

[6] Stone was a two-term trustee of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary where he was heavily involved in establishing the Roy Fish School of Evangelism and Missions.

[6][13][14] He was a long-time member of the Board of Visitors at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, NC.

"[4] On his first trip, in 1996, he walked 3,650-mile from the Capitol steps in Washington, D.C., south to Jacksonville, FL and westward to Los Angeles, CA.

He walked 1,700-mile, south to north from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas in Mexico and ended in Detroit, MI at the Ambassador Bridge leading into Canada.

The whole purpose of the walk was to deliver a message of hope to hurting Americans and to make a mark for good in our country's battle against drug abuse.

[8][12] During the trip he lost consciousness when riding in a car from the walking route to a speaking engagement in Gallatin, TN.

"[10] Governor Jim Hunt awarded him the Order of the Long Leaf Pine for his contributions in the areas of mental health and drug abuse prevention.

[3] In 2006, Stone received the Richard D. Land Distinguished Service Award from the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention.