Ian, 20, battled alcohol and drug addiction for years, dating back to middle school. His life is renewed now and he’ll graduate in May 2024 from the year-long program at Adult & Teen Challenge Ohio Valley.
His future is much brighter. “I plan on moving back with my parents and then toward the fall, I plan on enlisting in the military,” he said. Ian, who grew up in Warren, plans to enlist in the U.S. Army.
Before arriving at ATCOV, he was in a pretty dark place. “I was homeless, living out in Las Vegas, living out on the streets,” Ian said. “I was addicted to fentanyl, Xanax, meth — basically any drugs you can think of.” He was broken, tired of that lifestyle and of being so far from his family. He called his parents for help and they arranged for him to enter ATCOV.
Ian was ready to change his life. He walked in the doors of ATCOV with his parents and aunt encouraging him. His aunt was telling him that the year would fly by and that his life of sobriety would be much better. “I knew everything she was saying was true, but I was just so overwhelmed that I had to put in a year’s work of change,” Ian said. “But I never fought the program. I was pretty disciplined. I was committed to want to change. I absorbed everything from day one that they had to offer. I was pretty on board with it.”
His drug use dates back to eighth grade, smoking weed, drinking and partying with high school kids. It progressed from there. He had burned his ties at home and his parents kicked him out when he was 18.
He was living with his girlfriend, but they weren’t getting along because of his drug use. “She kind of gave me the ultimatum to either go seek treatment or I had to leave,” Ian said. He wasn’t ready to stop using so he left and moved to Las Vegas where his drug use continued.
Ian grew up attending Sunday school and was confirmed in the Roman Catholic Church. After that though, he didn’t step foot in a church again until he came to ATCOV. He didn’t have a relationship with Jesus before. It’s through ATCOV that he forged that relationship.
“It’s basically a renewing of the mind I got through a relationship with Jesus Christ,” Ian said. “It’s kind of the perspective of keeping it simple and keeping the glass half full – just picking up my cross daily and taking on the burdens of life with great joy and with great pride knowing that He’s fighting the battle for me. I look at life as not a struggle or something to hold me down anymore but to find growth in the meaning of my life through my relationship with Him.”
