Now available from Amazon and Barnes and Noble and Burlington By The Book!
Listen to Dellenna share her story in these podcasts episodes:
The Normal Lies Podcast with Linda Heeler.
Alchemical Dialogues: from Lead to Gold.
Read the Prologue to God’s Teardrop:
When I was in jail in Texas, a counselor had us write our own obituary as part of our group therapy. Then we read them out loud. I can’t remember all I wrote, but it impressed the other inmates. “Wow, Dellenna, that is so good.”
But the counselor didn’t buy it. “Dellenna, you left out how you would die. You don’t seem like the type of person to OD.” She fed right into my ego.
“I know, because I can smoke or drink you and whoever else under the table.”
But she persisted. “How would you die?”
I thought about that. “You know what, I would be that female that would be found in a ditch somewhere, with my panties down to my ankles, beat up and stabbed, my lighter in one hand and the stem in the other, in a death grip.”
When you’re a prostitute and you get assaulted, nobody cares. They think you deserve it. You’re not a human being. I can’t count how many times I’ve been beat up and left for dead.
But I never lost my faith when I was out on the streets. I knew I was in the wilderness. I left God. He never left me. It bugs me when people say God doesn’t listen to a sinner’s prayers because there have been so many times when He heard me, so many times when He saved me. So even though I was sinning at the time, I know He heard me. There’s no other reason why I’m here.
Praise for God’s Teardrop: My journey of healing from addiction and prostitution
“Dellenna’s brutally honest story of her struggle with addiction is a must read—for every woman who is struggling with addiction, for every family member of a loved one caught in the grips of addiction, for every employee, student, or community volunteer engaged in human services and criminal justice systems, for every white person seeking to understand the impact of racism on individual lives.
“I was particularly drawn to the role of Dellenna’s family members in expressing their love, both tough and tender, in care and support of her. Her mom, dad, and siblings were on the journey as well, experiencing both hope and disappointment so many times, and never giving up.
“Dellenna’s addiction allowed her to escape from confronting her overwhelming feelings of being judged by her peers as ‘less than’ because of the color of her skin and later, when having a black friend was cool, as ‘more than’ because of the color of her skin. Her story exposes the negative underbelly of our social norms of beauty, gender, sexuality and race, and the devastating consequences of fear/hate-based biases and actions on individuals, families, and community.
“Dellenna’s intellect is evident; she owns her choices and makes a compelling case for a path out of addiction—connecting her thinking to her feelings about herself, being willing to ask for help, and remaining open to the supports of family and community that believe in both dignity and potential of the least of us.”
Jean Carroll, Sociologist, Former CEO of YWCA of Rochester, N.Y.
“Dellenna Harper has crafted an exhilaratingly honest story of the first part of her life and the roads she took to survive to the second part. Her voice is genuine as she goes from the sweetness of tadpoles in childhood to the stark reality of recovery in her adult years with all it means. Any reader who knows of addiction will gain new insights and compassion through this story of pain, purpose, and promise. Rich images that tell of cruelty and heartache are paired with hope and the powerful wonder of love. A salute to Rochester’s Jennifer House.”
Elizabeth Osta, Author of Jeremiah’s Hunger and Saving Faith
“God’s Teardrop is one woman’s story of heaven’s response to a world filled with racism, sexism, bullies, oppression, shame, guilt, and addiction. This is the life journey of a survivor who cried out from the depth of her soul. “Dellenna takes the reader through the darkness of addiction, to the challenges of recovery, and the incredible resilience of the human spirt. What Dellenna shares is honest and inspirational and provides a pathway that others may follow.”
Jim Smith, Friend and former co-worker at The Jennifer House
“God’s Teardrop is an emotional baptism that chronicles Dellenna’s heartbreaking journey through the cycle of addiction. However, this is not a story of unyielding trauma; instead, it offers the connective tissue of love and hope. It illustrates the beauty of God’s fulfilled promise and what happens when we are granted mercy.”
Tokeya C. Graham
Tenured Associate English Professor at Monroe Community College, Rochester, N.Y.
“I encourage anyone—anyone who has the guts—to read this down-to-the-bone account of what addiction can do to an intelligent and beautiful young woman, and how she climbed up from that pit and back into the land of the living to give back to others and encourage those following her path. In some places it can hurt to read this book. Read it anyway.”
Diana Robinson, Ph.D.
(One of the college instructors often challenged by the author’s wit and determination to seek and speak truth.)
“God’s Teardrop is an amazing story of transformation and resilience. No matter who you are—but especially if you are someone who has struggled with addiction or loved someone who has—you will find yourself reflected in these pages.”
Michael Boucher, LCSW-R
Co-Director of Counseling and Community Work at St. Joseph’s Neighborhood Center, Rochester, N.Y.
About the authors
Dellenna Harper is a Licensed Master Social Worker whose passion is advocating for and working with formerly incarcerated women who struggle with mental health, substance abuse, trauma, self, etc. This passion was conceived from her own personal issues struggling with addiction, incarceration, and everything else that comes with that lifestyle.
Dellenna is currently Executive Director of the Harbor Lights Program at The Salvation Army in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She was previously in other director positions at The Salvation Army. Prior to those, she was the Director of Spiritus Christi Prison Outreach Jennifer House in Rochester, New York, where she was a resident in 2006. Dellenna is a proud alumna of Monroe Community College (MCC), Nazareth College, and The Greater Rochester Collaborative of SUNY College at Brockport and Nazareth. She was one of the first graduates of the Addictions Counseling Program at MCC. Dellenna was the recipient of the 2013 Jessica Shackelton Maclay Distinguished Alumni Award, presented by the Nazareth College Social Work Department and was also an honoree for the prestigious Rochester Women’s Network “W” Award. Dellenna lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Jane Sutter Brandt owns Sutter Communications, which offers a variety of services, including writing, editing, public relations, publishing, and social media. Jane is the author of Sutter’s Sodas Satisfy: A memoir of 90 years of Sutter Drug Co., about the business founded by her great-grandfather in Burlington, Iowa. Her most recent book is Beloved Burlington: Featuring businesses you knew and loved. Prior to founding Sutter Communications, Jane was an award-winning journalist with more than thirty years of experience in newspapers, magazines, and websites. She earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Missouri School of Journalism. She is married to Gary Brandt and lives in Rochester, New York.