This gripping story follows Audey, a man raised on a hardscrabble farm in Vermilion County—slaughtering livestock, no running water or electricity at first—and where his parents and grandparents constantly partied. He saw alcohol as a normal part of life from an early age, drinking the remnants of the beer left over from their parties.

A straight-A, honor-roll kid, he moved to Danville, toughened up amid racial tensions, started carrying a knife, dropped out of school to party full-time, and progressed from marijuana to acid, speed, crack, meth, and heroin. He was a hard worker and made good money as a pipe fitter and iron worker, but prioritized drugs over his family needs.

Audey entered treatment multiple times, mostly court-ordered, before finally achieving sobriety through NA meetings. Eventually he drifted away from the accountability, and relapsed spectacularly, thinking “one more” would fix things. He blew through a large amount of money he had saved for a house, and then began to get back into the criminal behaviors he'd been involved in before.

On May 3, 1991, he chose to attend an NA meeting instead of helping his friends with a big job. They went to prison, and he’s been clean ever since.
Now decades sober, he credits working the steps, serving others, and living out recovery in his home, work, and in the community. His story is a powerful testament that no matter how far down you go, recovery is possible, miracles happen, and life sober is worth fighting for.

A raw, no-holds-barred account from a woman who grew up in a outwardly “good” family—mayor dad, vacations, Disney World—but never heard the words “I love you.” Hyperactive with undiagnosed ADHD, she felt like the family misfit while her sisters became a doctor and psychologist.

She started drinking at 15, moved to weed, then crack at 26, saying “I wish I’d never tried it”. She lost three houses, two cars, her children (taken by the state), and hit rock bottom: homelessness, selling everything to the dealer, family cutting her off, and a suicide attempt that left her in a coma. Doctors didn’t expect her to survive.

Desperate, she googled “safe house” and found her way to a women’s support house in Danville IL. She retrained her brain, battling her bipolar disorder, PTSD, and racing thoughts, and discovered sober joy: dancing, car shows, and peace.

Today she’s free, ashamed of who she was but proud of who she’s becoming.

Kimberly shares a powerful story of addiction that began at age 50 after her 27-year marriage ended. Childhood wounds from her mom's divorce - feeling unloved, family alcoholism, and poverty - resurfaced and manifested as deep pain and emptiness.

Never having touched drugs before, she started experimenting with marijuana and cocaine, then crack cocaine introduced by a partner, chasing escape more than the high itself. It spiraled fast: weight loss, bad crowds, near-fatal overdose, and finally hallucinations of her grandkids waving goodbye.

After hitting rock bottom and fearing she’d die young like her mom, who passed at 56, Kimberly entered a dual-diagnosis facility for substance use and mental health. There, she processed her trauma, found closure, and began rebuilding who she truly wants to be.

This story stands as a raw reminder that addiction can strike later in life, pain doesn’t disappear with age, but recovery is possible, and you can like the person who you are becoming.