In October 2023 seven members of the Guiding Light Recovery program celebrated one year of sobriety. These men made the decision to stay through the four-month program, find work, and move to Iron House. Not only is it inspiring for everyone in the community to see successful stories of recovery, but it is also a huge morale boost for current clients, who are just beginning the same journey these six men embarked upon over a year ago.

The Following is an Excerpt From a Speech Given by Guiding Light Recovery Graduate, Chaz, at his One Year Celebration.

” I always like to say, this road to recovery and this growth in life is a constant thing. And the minute I lose sight of that, that minute is the same minute I go backwards. I wanna give thanks to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Through him is how I move and have my being. Without him, I’m nothing. I want to thank Guiding Light for helping me to see who I really am. I think my background really had me have this muddy watered thought that I was some street hoodlum, and I lived that out for years and years to the point where it became a part of me. It became something that I just was, and I believed that’s who I was, but that’s not what God intended me to be. I truly believe that we all-the person inside of us that Guiding Light brings out, is already there. Guiding Light doesn’t turn us into something. It doesn’t transform us into anything. It shows us how to tap into the thing that God already gave us.  Addiction…it’s very difficult to do, man. It’s a difficult lifestyle. And Guiding Light gives us the tools to sustain the life that we want to live if we want it. So I’m very thankful for that. I really don’t wanna spend too much time on myself. I want to encourage the men in the program. I encourage you guys to fight the good fight. A lot of guys come to me and I talk to a lot of guys and they say, ‘man, I’m ready to leave because this and this happened, this and that happened.’ Ain’t nothing happened. Those are just excuses that we use to try to get out of the program or try to give up. It doesn’t matter what happens. I have to, and we all have to, continue to understand that our mind just wants to give up. It’ll use any reason that is available. And I just really want to encourage you guys. God bless you. Stick to the program. Thank you all.”