Bradley’s poverty, pain and redemption

NO ONE chooses a life of poverty and like the many who find themselves on the end of affluence, Bradley Hughes was born into the extreme opposite end.

His childhood was faced with overwhelming challenges which contributed to his hard-knock life which he has impressively illustrated in his debut book, Poverty, Pain and Redemption.

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“My mother was never around and my father was a habitual offender of the law. The only maternal contact and warmth that I had was from my paternal grandmother, whom I had to take care of until her death after battling with severe asthma,” he shared. This is when Bradley’s psychological pain began. He became a juvenile offender as a youngster in Wentworth engaging in petty crimes and experimenting with drugs, before he was taken to Johannesburg by his paternal aunt.
Bradley soon found love and married his first wife and together they became a local version of Bonnie and Clyde, committing fraudulent transactions. Together they managed to defraud a department of the South African government for a total of R4.2 million and lived a luxurious life for a few short years until the long arm of the law caught up with them and were imprisoned at separate correctional facilities. During his incarceration, he witnessed the harsh reality of prison life which he also describes in great detail in the book.

On his release, he returned to a life of homelessness and vagrancy in Durban. However, it wasn’t long until he met Leighton Smith from a church in Newlands East, who took him by the hand and lead him into the doors of redemption. It was after opening his heart to God that he gained a new lease on life and was inspired to put pen to paper to share his sad, yet candidly thrilling story with the help of Wentworth book editor, Lorraine Richards, whom he met by chance.

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Since his release, Bradley has met and married Lucille, who is an edu-care teacher. Because of the stigma attached to Bradley’s imprisonment, and his constant unemployment, she has to often be the sole provider for the family. Nevertheless, Bradley continues in his search for a steady job and wakes every morning to share the word of God and serve coffee to the down and out in his community. He advises the youth to take a stand against crime, follow the right path in life and not allow unfortunate circumstances to determine their future.
To get a copy of Poverty, Pain and Redemption contact Bradley Hughes on 084-011-4485.

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