This organization did not start with a business plan. It started with a conviction — that people in recovery deserve more than what the system typically offers them. Here is where that conviction came from.
I did not start Flawed BUT Favored because I saw a market opportunity. I started it because I saw a gap — a gap between what people in recovery need and what they are typically offered. I saw people who were doing the hard work of rebuilding their lives, and I saw a system that was not built to support that work. I decided to build something different.
The name comes from a place of deep personal conviction. Flawed BUT Favored is a statement about identity — about the belief that our imperfections do not disqualify us from grace, purpose, or a life worth living. We are all flawed. The flaw is not the end of the story.
I grew up watching my grandfather, Paul Bernard Culpepper, live out the values that now shape this organization. He served his country. He served his community. He saw the potential in people that they could not always see in themselves. When he passed, I felt the weight of that legacy — and the responsibility to carry it forward in a way that would honor him.
Veterans hold a special place in this mission. My grandfather was a veteran. The men and women who have served this country and come home to struggle deserve more than a system that processes them. They deserve a home that sees them — their service, their sacrifice, and their capacity for something more. That is what I am building.
This work is not easy. Building a recovery housing organization from the ground up, in a community that needs it, with the standards we hold ourselves to — it is hard. But it is the right work. And every time I see a resident take a step forward — get a job, reconnect with their family, find their footing — I know exactly why I started.
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