Recovery Hero: Chris

My name is Chris, I’m 31yrs old. I was born in Chicago, IL. I’ve been in recovery since 2017. The one thing that I’m most proud of accomplishing within this time has been my acceptance. Having confidence in myself and my recovery actually has allowed me to talk openly and proudly about my personal journey. A low point for me was when I was at work, street-sweeping a road, and I fell asleep at the wheel and clipped the back end of a co-worker’s car with the sweeper and tore the whole back end off. I was so scared, embarrassed, and ashamed, that I immediately parked and went back to sweeping with a broom.

I acted as if I had no idea what had happened and was fired that day from my job when my supervisor had found out I lied. That was the first time I actually started to consider my addiction as a problem. From that day forward, a seed was planted. It eventually grew until I got sober and could begin to help those who had also walked in my shoes. My purpose is to make a difference in our community, especially for young black males who feel like they have no help. I want to give them a way to break free from their destructiveness with battling addiction