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Mindy, a graduate of Hope Academy, Fairbanks recovery-focused high school, learned an important lesson during her stay — the importance of being honest.

“I learned I had to be honest with myself,” Mindy says. “I had been lying to myself.”

Mindy immediately clicked with the staff, but the expectations were different than what she was used to.

“They weren’t just focused on your grades. They were focused on your sobriety, too.”

Mindy graduated from Hope Academy on May 28th, 2010, and has enrolled at IVY Tech Community College. After she finishes at IVY Tech she wants to earn a degree in mortuary sciences, but is committed to taking life one day at a time.

“I live by that,” she says with a smile.
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After years of drinking and casual drug use, Tyrone found his own path to recovery by witnessing the hope Fairbanks had given his own brother.

“I watched my brother change and realized I was addicted to drugs and alcohol also and I wanted to change. He really helped me see that there was hope.” said Tyrone.

Although Tyrone struggled with the concept of sobriety and honesty for several years he has now been sober for three years and has a new outlook on life.

“I changed my attitude and actions and realized that I have to be honest with myself,” said Tyrone. “It begins with me and it ends with me and I have to be responsible for my decisions.
My life today is better than it’s ever been.”
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Debra, a former patient who now volunteers at Fairbanks, says that the best thing she received from her time in recovery here, was when she left.

“I had to face life on my own, and I learned I wasn’t afraid anymore – I could feel the peace.”

Being at Fairbanks, Debra says, helped her find the woman she’s been hiding all these years. “When I look in the mirror, I can say I actually like this person,” she says. “I had to deal with all my emotions and stuff. Before recovery, my emotions were in a bottle.”

“My biggest thrill is talking with the other women at Fairbanks,” she says. “They think I’m helping them…they’re helping me.”
READ DEBRA'S STORY>>