Chris Coon has received his degree from the toughest school in the United States… the streets of America. He has been on his own since he was two months old. Chris’ life was forever altered when he was traded for an eight ball of crack to a Preacher from the South who smoked crack in the back before preaching in Church. Being tortured night after night, having his stepfather cut his tongue open with a straight blade and pour soap on the wound to see how loud he could scream, watching the girls get molested, and seeing his stepmother beaten were just some of the horrific experiences Chris was subjected to; and this was all in just his childhood from the age of 2 months to 12 years old. Chris had no other choice but to step up and put a stop to all of this in order to save his stepmother’s life after his stepfather left her jaw broken in sixteen places after nearly beating her to death with a crowbar. This would be her final beating… Chris at 12 years old, at one o’clock in the morning, scared out of his mind and crying, compelled to save both their lives stabbed his stepfather in the middle of the night. He would then spend his entire teenage years in prison for this. This was life’s hand that Chris was dealt from 2 months old to seventeen years.

Sent to more prisons and jails for this crime for nearly seven-years, there is nothing he does not know about what it is like to be a Forgotten Soul. He has been homeless, been in the shelters, panhandled, has been a victim of the Public housing system, Public healthcare, etc… you name it, he has been through it with the exception of alcohol and drugs which he has never participated in. He knows what’s wrong, and he knows how to fix it but that is easier said when done when considering his past.

After all of this misery, you would expect him to have anger, rage, and think the world owes him. However, he is a proud father and has turned his anger, pain and experiences into positive and influential expressions through spoken-word poetry. Chris’ poetry hits home and the hearts of many, and changes people’s views on life every time he opens his mouth or picks up a pen. He is a teacher of all mankind, and is addicted to giving to others and making sure no one ever has to go through what he has been through. He taught himself sign language as a means of communicating with one of the many homeless individuals that he has lived with on the street. He has worked with both the United Homeless Organization and The Doe Fund. Simply put, he has always been ready, willing and able to help society, and he knows what is really going on in the streets. Chris will be working daily with the Forgotten Souls, MJ, David, Darryl, and any and all management and future management within the foundation.

Chris earned his GED from Guilford Technical Community College at the age of seventeen while on parole and staying in a halfway house. Furthermore, he managed a way to work for UPS after school, while consistently returning back to the halfway house before curfew to study. Chris will be pursuing his Master’s Degree in business, while still running the program. He has done it before. He will do it again.