One of the biggest, most gratifying, payoffs comes when we hear from graduates who have stayed sober for a long time.

This weekend I received an e-mail from a man who was at TLC 18 years ago. His message said in part that he had just gone to a meeting "where I received my 18 year chip and talked about my experiences at TLC. I celebrated 18 years of sobriety yesterday that started at EVAC and led me to TLC 18 years ago." He added that we didn't think he'd last a week.

His message was full of promises come true. He's been married 12 years, his family connections are great, and he's had the same good job for 13 years. He finished with "everything is going well."

Prior to his decline into alcoholism this man was a professional who worked for a large public corporation. At one time he had a well-paid position with this company and all of the perquisites. He had a college education and every expectation that things would always go his way. However, alcohol brought him down. Shortly before he came to TLC he was living behind a convenience store dumpster not knowing what to do next.

It's wonderful to receive messages like this from former clients. When we see people whose lives have been dramatically changed, who have escaped from the ravages of drugs and alcohol, it makes everything just that much more worthwhile.