Volunteer Spotlight
Mike
“We all know I wasn’t the guy who followed the rules.”
“I bucked and screamed a lot of times at in2Action over the rules and stuff. I didn’t want to go to Bible study, I didn’t want to do anything I was asked to do.” Mike admits that when he first arrived at in2Action in February 2019, he was a piece of work. Now, one year after entering in2Action as a resident, Mike is one of our star volunteers.
Mike was asked several weeks ago to begin facilitating one of our once/week ‘skill drills’ for the Phase One residents. These are practical “how-to” classes that help prepare our men for successful living. He jumped at the chance; in fact, he had already decided he wanted to do just that, so the timing was perfect. Mike’s Thursday skill drill focuses on Life in Recovery – which is right down his alley, since he can relate so well with the other men, having ‘been there, done that.’ As he says, “recovery is not for the faint of heart!”
Mike says it’s different now, being on the other side of the fence…now as a volunteer, instead of a resident. “It’s challenging. You’ve got the ones that participate, and you’ve got the ones you’ve got to pull out – getting an answer out of them is like pulling teeth.” “I get it now,” he says, suggesting that all the rules and structure make sense to him now, from this new perspective. “It’s challenging but so rewarding. My reward is the sense that I have an opportunity to reach out to somebody and to help him and to be part of his support system.”
For some months now, Mike has also been co-facilitating a support group for men and women who have been incarcerated and who are striving to make a new life for themselves in our community. The group is called ‘Winner’s Circle’ and it meets every Tuesday evening at the ROC (Re-entry Opportunity Center). Some have said it’s the best self-help meeting in town. This is another way Mike is giving back.
Clearly, Mike is not the same person he used to be. When asked what has brought about so much growth over this past year, he credits the change to two things: 1) the constant and overwhelming “tough love” that was shown to him during his time at in2Action; and 2) the relationships he was able to develop. “Nothing else has helped me more than the foundation of relationships I invested in. I made connections with positive people because I was willing to go outside my comfort zone…with people from church, NA, mentors, friends, etc.”
Perhaps the best word to describe Mike is tenacious. It was his bull-dog determination to turn his life around that has kept him in recovery. Now, he is using that same tenacity to pour himself into the lives of others who need the same kind of support he received. “I know how important it is; we need people. And that’s why I’m clean today because I continually try to give it away.”
Mike plans to become a certified peer support specialist. He looks forward to “the next level of giving back, whatever God has for me…” We are blessed to have Mike still with us at in2Action!
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