Ted G. Stone

Teddy Gerald Stone (May 20, 1934 – July 16, 2006) was a Southern Baptist evangelist and former drug addict who founded his own ministry to help addicts. To raise funds and awareness of the ministry he completed three walks across the United States and was on his fourth walk when he died. He was also on the board of trustees for Southwestern Baptist Seminary, wrote for the Baptist Press, and ran for statewide leadership roles in the church in North Carolina.

Early life and career Stone was born in North Carolina to Coy F. and Sudie "Oleta" (West) Stone and had two younger brothers, Dwight and Donnie. He graduated from Durham High School before earning his Bachelor of Arts degree from Wake Forest University in 1956. While at Wake Forest, he lettered as a member of the cross-country team, was a member of Sigma Pi fraternity, won the J.B. Currin public speaking award, and was the pastor of Bell's Baptist Church. While at Bell's, he organized homeowners whose property was threatened by the proposed Jordan Lake. 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 also studied at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and Duke University graduate school.

He married Ann Fuller on Aug. 31, 1956 in Durham County, North Carolina. They had three daughters: Ellen, Carole, and Lisa.

Stone became the associate pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Durham from 1959 to 1962. He also looked for activities outside of the ministry. He published a newspaper called Chatham Life and tried his hand at real estate, insurance, putt-putt golf, and as a florist.

Addiction Stone first became addicted to drugs while he was a minister in 1970. A friend gave him two amphetamine pills to help "make him more efficient at his job". The two pills quickly became a fifteen pill a day habit. His personality distorted, he left his church and was soon arrested on drug charges. He said he became a "criminal monster" and robbed at least four convenience stores. At the last robbery, in 1971, he shot a clerk. He was eventually caught and charged with attempted murder. He was paroled after spending four and a half years in prison. He began the Ted Stone Ministries

He wrote The Drug Tragedy in 1987 which was a general survey of the drug problem in America and proposed solutions. With Philip Barber, he wrote Hope for the One Who Hurts and Hope for the One Who Cares, one to provide help for people with drug addictions and the other to give help to the addict's loved ones.

He continually pushed Southern Baptists, and Christians in general, to assist people with addictions. 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."

He believed that the Christian church held the answer to the drug abuse problem: "Most programs use something to substitute for the abuser's addiction. Some even refer to a higher power. But my message is that by putting your dependence on the Lord Jesus Christ, you can break your dependence on chemical substances." He also said that Jesus is still in the miracle working business.

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

Two scholarship funds were established in his name. The Ted Stone Scholarship Fund for Evangelism and Missions at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and the Ted Stone Scholarship Fund at Southeastern Seminary.