Special thanks to Tom and Bonnie G. from Springfield for their recent visit to Elk Mountain Academy. Their son Alex died in out patient treatment at age 23 just weeks ago.
He was a resident at EMA in Idaho and attended Lakeshore in Hope as well, 5 years ago when he was 18.
Tom and Bonnie were kind enough to come at their own expense to meet with the boys at Elk Mountain Academy to share their "experience, strength, and hope".
I love the saying "what comes from the heart reaches the heart".
They started their presentation with a power point which included pictures of Alex as a baby. Later photos showed Alex playing sports. He really excelled at baseball. I think the photos really helped the guys connect with the rest of the message. Alex helped several students work the steps and was always there to help others. Unfortunately, he was not able to stay sober himself. His death illustrates perfectly what we are talking about as we explain to the guys that it does not it matter what drug you use. The end is the same. Alex was the fourth former EMA student to die of this disease. We had one student die from a heart attack while smoking meth.
The first student who passed in 2001 had a single car accident.
THC was the ONLY drug in his system. To loose young men in their prime is one of the hardest aspects of our job. What this does to families is not describable.
Our students got straight talk from Tom and Bonnie regarding THEIR heartbreak, their loss, and their feelings. I know they hit the mark!
Several guys lined up for hugs after the talk. The talk started at 10:30 as planned. After lunch we met again (not initially planned). The guys all got to ask questions. Most were centered around what they were doing do deal with the loss. Some had questions about Alex. ALL thanked them for coming and sharing. That nights AA meeting (at the Filling Station in Clark Fork) the topic was the talk and what it meant to them.
I know part of Tom's and Bonnie's talk was aimed at getting these guys to THINK about what they are doing.
To think about how important the struggle is. What the costs are if sobriety is lost. Again I think they were very successful.
Thanks again Tom and Bonnie!
Take good care.
God Bless.
Carl Olding
Recreational Therapist
Elk Mountain Academy
PO Box 330
Heron, MT 59844
Phone: (406)847-4400 ext 18
colding@elkmountainacademy.org
