Kevin graduated from TROSA’s multi-year program in the early months of 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic raised new challenges and uncertainties for the world around him. Thanks to his achievements at TROSA, his community assignment at TROSA Moving, and TROSA’s community of support from residents, graduates, and staff members he has been able to rebuild his life and reclaim his future.
Today, he is happy, healthy, and serving as inspiration for others.
“Since graduating, I have started a meaningful career as a Benefits Advisor for about 24 local businesses. I also married the most incredible woman (who is also a TROSA graduate), and we are saving to build the house of our dreams. A little over four years ago, I was worried about where I would lay my head and where I would get the money for my next fix. Now, I’m worried about mortgage interest rates. I am not the same person I was before TROSA.
Though designed as a structured two-year program, TROSA is a voluntary program and residents may leave early if they choose. Recovery is a lifelong journey and it is important to give individuals the option to return to TROSA, which they can do by applying again to the multi-year program.
“The most valuable lesson I learned from my first attempt at recovery was that as long as you are still breathing, there is always hope for a better life.
“Coming back to the program with absolutely nothing to my name, I was able to gain back a lot of what I had lost. In our addiction, most of what we lose is immaterial and irreplaceable. If you lose a car to non-payment or a house to foreclosure, over time, a new one can come along; however, when we lose the trust of our loved ones, our self-worth and any hope for a future only return with a true effort to make lasting changes in our lives.” Kevin dedicated himself to his recovery and TROSA provided the time, space, and opportunities for him to make the lasting changes he needed.
Every TROSA resident participates in community assignments as part of their comprehensive recovery program. Community assignments play a key therapeutic role, giving residents the opportunity to learn and practice new vocational and life skills; set personal and professional goals; and work on behaviors and thought patterns they may want to change alongside peers in recovery.
“Through my community assignment at TROSA Moving I learned time-management and organizational and leadership skills. I was given the opportunity to gradually accept more responsibility, which greatly improved my self-assurance in my ability to be an asset as a team member wherever I go”
As a result of his substance use disorder, Kevin had lost his driver’s license. TROSA was able to help pay for his fines and reinstate his license, which opened the doors to additional training opportunities while in the program. “At TROSA, I trained for and obtained my Class-A Commercial Driver’s License (CDL). I even had the privilege to see a lot of the United States while driving to Utah for an interstate move.”
During his multi-year program, Kevin learned about himself through group classes and counseling, and through daily interactions with peers and staff in recovery. “The most important thing I learned at TROSA was not to make small sacrifices; understanding that giving an inch gives my addiction a chance to take a mile. Honesty—with myself and with others—does not always produce the most desired circumstances, but it always produces the most desired outcome, which for me is sobriety. By being honest, at the end of each day I can feel good about my decisions and where I am in life.”
Kevin shares this advice for current TROSA residents—and for all those striving for a better life: “Take each day as an opportunity to do a little better than the day before. If you fail at something, abstain from using that as an excuse to give up completely. Keep pushing and try harder. We all have the same opportunity for a better life.”