No one of Michael’s stature in organized crime has publically renounced participation in that life and walked away – much less, to serve a different boss, Jesus. Michael is the very first to admit – “If I got what I deserved, I’d be dead or in prison for the rest of my life.”
When a good guy goes bad, it is on the front page and the lead story of every newscast. When a bad guy goes bad, it is buried with the obituaries. But Michael’s story could not be hidden under a bushel. Life Magazine, Cosmopolitan, Vanity Fair, and others wrote about what the media dubbed “The Born Again Don. (Vanity Fair, January 1991)”
Some questioned the transformation, assuming it was a scam. But time is the real test. More than a dozen years have passed, and Michael has become a living example, proof positive – you are never so good you do not need Jesus, no so bad you can receive Jesus - the ground at the foot of the cross is absolutely level.
That one person can have a significant impact – and that the person can be a teen – is never more evident than with Camille Garcia. Michael found his own Damascus Road, and it began poolside with a beautiful woman, Cammy. What caught Michael’s eye captured his heart, but what was in her heart changed him forever. Michael and Cammy Married, and have 4 children.
Cammy introduced Michael to the Lord in a fresh and real way – she was living it, and he saw in her something dramatically different. It was at that time that he decided to walk from his life in the mob. His conversion experience to a Christian faith completed the transition for Michael from a kingdom of darkness into a kingdom of light.
One covenant bound him to the mob, the other, the covenant in Christ, set him free. Cammy's role in the transformation of Michael cannot be overstated, leading media to call her "the woman who changed the face of organized crime." Her role is a story of inspiration for women everywhere. That God used the power of love to penetrate the heart of a mafia captain, and be instrumental in Michael leaving the mafia and coming to faith is nothing short of inspiring.
Michael details in his autobiography an encounter with a prison guard in MDC. He was to be held there for just one night pending transfer. He had served 5 years, was on parole, and his parole was violated. He sat in that cell despondent. A guard appeared, saw his condition, and put a Bible in Michael’s cell. That one act of kindness by a man Michael saw one time – and never again – was the catalyst to complete what was begun with Cammy – Michael’s transformation. That Bible opened to Proverbs 16:7 where Michael read, "when a man's ways are pleasing to the Lord, even his enemies are at peace with him." At that moment, alone, Michael surrendered. Not to the law of man, but to the law of God, reaching out for amazing grace.
This is the rest of the story – the heart of why Michael Franzese did the unthinkable. This story of inspiration, of transformation, of pure grace, is what inspires audiences small and large, whether in a small church in Texarkana, Texas, Chisasipi, Canada with a group of Cree Indian Youth 100 miles from the Arctic Circle, a mega-Church Willow Creek Community Church in suburban Chicago, or Creation Festival with 50,000 people – the message is always the same.
Franzese is now a man on a mission. Determined to use the compelling experiences of his former life for the benefit of at-risk youth, professional and student athletes, corporate executives and for anyone seeking the inspiration to beat the odds and make positive changes in their lives, he has become a highly regarded motivator and a source of invaluable information. Franzese candidly describes how he survived dozens of grand jury appearances, 3 major racketeering indictments, 5 criminal trials, 7 years in prison and a Mafia death sentence. He tells how he engaged bankers, corporate executives, union officials and professional and student athletes in a wide variety of financial scams. His open and honest presentations are fresh and unique. Audiences are captivated by stories of his personal experiences in organized crime and genuinely affected by his powerful anti-crime messages and eye opening revelations, particularly Church and faith-based events who hear his testimony of faith.
Michael's compelling story of transformation has been featured through both Christian and general high profile media. Most recently, he was featured on the 700 Club * 100 Huntley Street * Billy Graham's Decision Today Radio * Family Network "Open House" * Daystar Network * LeSea Broadcasting "Harvest" * TBN Praise the Lord & Damascus Road * Life Today with James Roberson. He has also been featured in Life Magazine * Fortune Magazine * Vanity Fair * Sports Illustrated * GQ * L.A * Times * 48 Hours * The Today Show * Nightline * ABC Primetime * NBC Nightly News * ESPN * HBO Real Sports * Jim Rome Show * PBS "All Things Considered" * the prestigious "The Eleventh Hour" for PBS, with guests Dennis Weaver and Jeb Magruder and feature is in the March 2003 issue of Cigar Aficionado .
"As a sworn member of La Cosa Nostra, I knowingly took an oath, a blood covenant, that obligated me to live my life in conflict with both the laws of God and of man. Although the Lord Jesus was known to me, at the time, I chose to give authority over my life to the boss of the Colombo crime family. Today, there is no doubt in my mind that I was doomed to spend an eternity in hell had I continued to reject the authority and live outside of the grace of my true boss, Jesus Christ. Mark 14:24 tells me that the blood of the covenant of Jesus set me free from the covenant with the mob." Michael Franzese
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