- Alcohol
- Drugs
I was raised in Clarkson, Ontario from the age of two until I was 15 years old. Then, my parents bought a house up north in Flesherton, Ontario where the population was only 300. This caused cultural shock for me and my brothers. I ended up running away since I couldn’t handle the small community they choose to live in. Upon running away, I lived on the streets in many cities for almost seven years. I was drinking and drugging to adjust to that way of living. I felt lost in my own skin and I thought there wasn’t anyone out there who could help me.
I met Penny, the mother of my children, around 1989. We shortly moved in together. We had a daughter, Elizabeth, in 1991. Penny’s family didn’t like me, and when she died in 1992 during the birth of our son Jeffrey, her family blamed me for it. One day, I had enough and called a detox center in Ontario to see if I could get help. I really wanted it this time. While in detox, I asked for help to get clean and sober so I could live in my own skin. I was accepted to a treatment center in Ontario and spent three and a half months there learning how to live in the community. Nine months later, I was speaking at round-ups.
Today, I have been sober since September 7th, 2005. I now chair numerous meetings, have spoken at meetings in several cities outside my living area, have been a guest speaker at the Penetang Mental Health Centre and have spoken to groups of school children.
My future goals are ambitious. I want to continue my sponsorships and attendance at meetings. Despite my dislike of reading, I am disciplining myself and mentally preparing for what lies ahead. After receiving my high school diploma and furthering my studies, I can now say I have a diploma as an addictions and social service worker. In 2014, I will be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts and Science Degree in psychology from Lakehead University. I have since authored two books about recovery. I hope that my motivational speaking skills and life experience, along with my Christian faith, will allow me to empower troubled youth.
I have many successes and awards through school and the community, including the Lieutenant Governor’s Community Volunteer Awards for Students, a nomination for the Order of Orillia award and a financial award in my own name at Georgian College & Lakehead University (the first student in the school’s history to ever have such an award established while still in studies). Today, my goal is to give back to the community and help someone those can’t help themselves. This is why I become a motivational speaker and an author, to reach out to those who need it. I hope that sharing my struggles and hopes can help another person from going down the wrong road as I have.