Today, for #MeetUsMonday, we’re introducing you to Oscar, a recent REAL LIFE graduate who has become one of our newest Peer House Leaders! Born and raised in Hampton, Virginia, with 3 older siblings and his mom, Oscar started using drugs and alcohol at a very young age, but in spite of that, he graduated high school. Oscar started school at Lincoln University but returned after his first year and started selling drugs. After a stint in jail, he got a good job and had his first daughter and thought that he would get sober.
However, he continued in his active addiction and was in and out of prison for many years. Oscar did stay sober for periods of time and learned a lot about addiction at Narcotics Anonymous meetings. He got married and divorced during this time, and this was a huge life event for him. During a stint at Riverside Regional Jail, he learned about REAL LIFE and decided to commit to his sobriety. He loves the REAL LIFE curriculum because “it enlightened me about my disease and helped me change my behavior so that I can be more productive, especially at work,” Oscar says.
In a leap of faith, he’s decided to go back to school in order to become a substance abuse counselor. Oscar says, “I want to give back what’s been so freely given to me.”
