Time:  12 noon

Date:  February 20, 2012

Place:  Barry Hall, 14 Harrington Road, Cranston, RI

Prison has been hard on Dave.  “It’s tough, losing two friends and being portrayed as a monster,” he said.  Dave says he made a series of bad choices that led up to the crash.  Those bad choices resulted in the loss of two of his friends’ lives.

The loss of life he caused seems to be a great burden for him.  He says he thinks about his two friends every day.

While incarcerated, Dave has participated in several programs which seek to address his issues with alcohol, including; an intense, six month program with Spectrum Health Systems, Inc., two shorter programs with the Providence Center, and a 12-step program.  He is also involved in speaking to young people about the dangers of alcohol as a panelist with the Zero Fatalities Program.  The Zero Fatalities Program emphasizes DUI awareness among high school kids from around Rhode Island.  Students come to listen to a panel of inmates doing long DUI-related sentences.  They speak about the poor choices they made that led to devastation for all involved.  Dave said “students come up to me afterwards and tell me they gained a lot.  I’m a little bit younger, so I can relate to them.  I was a varsity basketball player and a good student.  It’s a little bit different than hearing it from an authority figure.  Hopefully I’m helping prevent another tragedy from happening.”

Dave said he’s found that speaking to young people helps him with his recovery from alcohol addiction.    He says his bigger problem is dealing with forgiving himself.  He expressed concern that his emotions might lead him in a direction he doesn’t want to go, a common issue with people trying to cope with addiction.   Speaking enables him to use his experience to help others avoid poor decisions that lead to  tremendous tragedies.

In September Dave participated in the first Rally for Recovery held behind prison walls in the United States.  Most Rally for Recovery celebrations occur in public spaces and are attended by people in long term recovery, their friends, families and allies.  The purpose of these rallies is to build a strong and vibrant culture and community of recovery.  By carrying this theme into prisons, it is hoped that upon release, former inmates will connect with the recovery community rather than falling back into their old environment.

Dave described the Rally for Recovery at the ACI.  He said it was held in a large classroom in the men’s Minimum Security Facilitiy, with groups of chairs on either side of a center aisle.  The inmates sat and listed to several people speak.  Between speakers there was some music.  “The room was filled with inmates, I was very impressed by how many people showed up to it,” he said, “It was a positive atmosphere and everyone was upbeat.”  In addition to the speakers there was also a collage of motivational slogans, and a recovery quilt on display.

According to sources at the Providence Center, over 100 inmates attended the same rally that Dave did.

“Myself and Jim Plante and Jim Gillen have developed a strong connection, “ Dave said.  “Those guys advise me in my life and help me out a lot.  I definitely feel like if there was something that gave me the urge to drink or use drugs I’d definitely have people that I can call and that I can depend on.”

That’s what the Rally for Recovery in prison is all about – celebrating progress.  Establishing and recognizing the connections that will sustain offenders in their recovery well into the future.