SHOOTING UP

In the 1980s, the Madrid slum of San Blas was at the heart of the heroin epidemic on the continent. It was an unlikely place for an American couple to raise their young children, but when God calls, you must answer—Christian missionaries Elliott and Mary Tepper packed up their boys and traveled from Mexico to Spain, eager to find a way to serve the Lord. At first, Elliott and Mary, along with their children, handed out religious tracts to “yonkis,” hoping to bring the Word to the addicts living on the streets of their neighborhood (“My father told us we had planted seeds in men’s hearts,” the author recalls). But the Teppers weren’t naive about the effectiveness of Bible verses alone to get people off drugs and see the light. Their apartment became an ad hoc detox center for those looking to kick their habits, and as word spread, the couple formally founded Betel, a free, donation-funded addiction clinic. It wasn’t long before the horrific specter of AIDS began to haunt the drug community, with most cases spread by intravenous infection. That only emboldened the Teppers to continue their care for the yonkis, regardless of their HIV status. As the author recounts, his unconventional childhood brought him into proximity with HIV positive addicts, who became his friends. The faith that powered the Teppers’ desire to do good wasn’t conditional or biased; that fulsome affection is felt throughout this memoir, even as the family’s beliefs were routinely tested. Not only did they see their nearest and dearest friends succumb one by one to AIDS—the Teppers were also shaken by unthinkable personal tragedies. These were faced with the same, clear-eyed fortitude that the Teppers brought to their mission.