Their stories were markedly different in many aspects, but with similar themes.
The four most recent graduates of Allen County Drug Court — an intense, supervised recovery program drug offenders can complete as a means to escape a life of addiction — shared stories at a ceremony Thursday.
Graduates Ashten Wilson, Amanda Sharp, Jacob Bancroft and Tabitha Valentine each described, in varying tones, how tough circumstances in their younger years eventually led to drug addiction and eventually legal woes.
Each shared the hopelessness that followed before the life raft that is Drug Court — launched in 2011 at the suggestion of former Allen County Sheriff Tom Williams — eventually gave each a new lease on life.
“I’ll sum this up for you,” said Valentine, who spoke to a crowded courtroom filled with supporters and personnel from within the 31st Judicial District. “Drug Court saved my life by not giving up on me.”
Sharp spoke about gaining strength after losing her family, her dignity and her faith.
“When I started drug court, I was lost and confused,” she admitted. “I could even say I was terrified. To me, I felt like I had to go in front of everyone and own up to my mistakes over and over again, when no one understood what got me to this place in my life
“During the program, I gained strength,” she continued. “I got my faith back and the courage to keep moving forward. And I met some amazing people along the way.
“I fought my way back from things meant to destroy me.”
SHARP’S story is filled with proverbial gut-punches.
She was raised by a mother who also struggled with alcohol, and would occasionally disappear for days at a time.
“I was left to take care of my little sister and her friends’ kids, when I was only a child myself.”
She soon picked up her mother’s habits, turning to alcohol to escape the stresses of life.
She battled alcohol and depression for the next 23 years,
Sharp was 7 ½ months pregnant with her first son when she was kicked out of her house. She was 18 years old when she lost an infant daughter.
