The following is a speech given by Guiding Light graduate Tim T. at his one-year sobriety celebration.
“Thank you to my higher power, our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ. And thank you to Guiding Light, for the men and women who run it, who are there for us every day. And thank you to those of you who give to this program so that we do not have to pay out of our pockets to be here.
I’ve been struggling with addiction for about 23 years. I started using around 16 years old and, because of drugs and alcohol, I lost almost 20 years of my life now. I lost a marriage, a relationship with my oldest daughter. I ended up living in hotels, staying there just long enough until I quit my job. I was waking up every morning vomiting blood and would just start drinking again. It was horrible. I had multiple suicide attempts, mental health problems, and it all came from substance abuse and this disease that we have.
Now that I have a relationship with God and with the men from this program, my life is amazing now. I have a safe place to call home. I have an awesome job that I love to go to every day and I actually enjoy.
The promises are coming true, because this past weekend, I got to talk to my oldest daughter for the first time in years. So thank you, everybody here. I was really nervous to be accepted into this program. Thank you so much and God bless.”
