Small Steps… Giant Leaps

There was a special ceremony at The Ottawa Mission recently honoring 30 men who have reached significant milestones in their personal journeys towards recovery from addiction.

Some had attended our daily drop in Day Program with perfect attendance for several months as a start on the path to recovery. Others had completed stays of anywhere from two weeks to three months in our Stabilization unit preparing for long term addiction treatment. And six of those in attendance had graduated from our 5-month residential treatment program called LifeHouse.

At the end of the formal proceedings people are invited to come forward to share their thoughts and experiences. Without fail, the stories that emerge from this portion of the ceremony are heartfelt in their praise of the staff and programming available at The Mission. But beyond this, the stories are all inspirational and deeply moving.

The final speaker was a former graduate of LifeHouse who has not only succeeded in maintaining his sobriety after years of addiction, but who has also taken his life in a direction he never dreamed possible. He has completed his first semester of university and had just received his marks – straight A’s!

Every man who spoke that day felt a great sense of accomplishment – regardless of the stage they are at along their road to recovery. And every man who spoke that day has finally arrived at a place where there is hope for the future – where there had once been none.

For all of these people, many small steps have amounted to giant leaps. Congratulations to all!