Event celebrates individual triumphs
Lions Park gathering lauds those who beat addiction
By Larry Meyer
Argus Observer
LarryM@argusobserver.com
Saturday, September 19, 2009 11:15 PM PDT
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| Larry Meyer | Argus Observer
Andrea Lockner and Claudia Wilcox addresses the crowd in Lions Park Thursday at the recovery celebration. Wilcox talked about her experience as a delegate to a huge recovery event in New York City. |
ONTARIO —Carmen Howe, Ontario, knows all about overcoming addiction.
Howe was addicted to methamphetamine and married at 16, gave birth to her first child at 17 and, by 18 she was divorced and still grappling with addiction.
“I was doing it with my friends. Everybody was doing it,” she said. “I was 16, and everything was meth.”
Besides losing her marriage, she eventually lost her daughters, who went to her parents and she could no longer rent an apartment. The deadly cycle of addiction did not end there, though. Not only was she now using meth, she was selling it to secure her own supply.
“I would get it in big quantities and sell. What was left was mine (after paying off her suppliers),” Howe said. “A lot of it was from Mexico and California.”
Howe was in and out of juvenile hall and jail several times. Among the charges she faced was attempting to distribute narcotics within 100 feet of school zone in addition to being in possession.
She was off the drug for a while, before her first child was born, but was soon back on it again.
In 2007, she was arrested one last time and was given the option of going to Safe — or drug — court and getting treatment.
In a move that proved to be the first step on the long road back to recovery, Howe chose the treatment route and entered Unio Recovery Center.
“I’ve been clean for 2.5 years,” Howe, now 23, said.
She is employed and has her own apartment again.
Stories like Howe’s proved to be one main theme Thursday at Lions Park during an annual recovery celebration that attracted a large crowd. People in recovery, their families and others gathered at the park to share stories, encourage each other and promote fellowship.
Now Howe, like many others, symbolizes the triumph of overcoming addiction and becoming a productive member of the community, no small feat considering the challenges she faced.
“DHS (Department of Human Services) closed my case in October 2007. I got both my girls back,” she said.
Claudia Wilcox, one of the organizers of the recovery celebration, has been clean for 12 years, after she struggled with alcohol abuse and a variety of drug addictions.
Wilcox, 50, Thursday had just returned from attending a recovery event in New York City, which included a march of 10,000 people in recovery across the Brooklyn Bridge.
Her trip and lodging was paid for by the A & E Cable Network, which picked people from each state to attend the event.
“They did this for 15 delegates,” Wilcox said. They were picked through an application process.
“I’m in long-term recovery,” she said, and now has desire to help others recover.
Being in recovery has given her the opportunity for a career, Wilcox said.
She has worked as an addiction specialist and works for DHS in child welfare. It was quite an honor to be chosen to attend the New York event, Wilcox said.
“It was the largest recovery event in the country to date,” she said.
Check out more local news at www.argusobserver.com. Larry Meyer is a reporter for the Argus Observer. He can be contacted at (541) 889-5387.
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