The first, Stanley, was at TLC several times and finally entered the Hard Six program.
He was a cordial guy who worked at our corporate office for some time. He seemed serious about recovery. He went to meetings and had a sponsor. Eventually he sought employment outside TLC and worked as a cook at a local detoxification center. He was communicating with his daughter and his future seemed promising.
But then one day, while in aftercare group, the group leader suspected he might be under the influence of heroin.
And, sure enough, he was. They told him he could come back to the program after three days. But he never did.
The story around town was that he was strung out. Once in a while someone would see him riding by the halfway houses on his bicycle. Then a day or so ago we heard that he died of a drug overdose.
The other man, Jeff, was a one-time driver for TLC. After he left that job he was living at the Southern house. Reports are that he left for work one day last week and never returned. He reportedly died under a tree outside a local retail store.
These untimely deaths impact all of us at TLC. And their deaths remind us that we have a dangerous disease that wants to kill us.
It also reminds us that what we do to help others isn't always successful. But if we can help a few into long-term recovery then what we do is worthwhile.
