The road to recovery can be long and winding, which is why former-addict Mike Jameson made it his mission to change the world the only way he knows how.
The self-proclaimed "hopeless dope fiend turned dopeless hope fiend" was honored Monday evening by the Three Rivers Citizens Advisory Board for his efforts to share his story of recovery and inspire others within his community to lead better lives.
"Mr. Jameson began speaking at our Victims Impact Panel in 2015... (he) breathed new life into a program designed to help others," said James Berry, District Administrator for Probation and Parole District 25 as he presented Jameson with the 2017 Outstanding Community Contribution award.
Jameson's journey began at an early age. He was born into a home riddled with substance abuse, within a community reeling from the effects of methamphetamine. By age 17, he was incarcerated at Boonville Correctional Center on a four-year sentence and continued down a harrowed path until he was 34 years old.
"I want people to know there's an opportunity for them to get away from where they're at; that they don't have to stay stuck in the same cycle over and over again; that there is hope," Jameson said.
The Poplar Bluff native began sharing his story in 2011, which is also the same year he completed time owed to the Missouri Department of Corrections.
Since then, Jameson has become a familiar face at the Southeast Missouri Drug and D.W.I. Victim Impact Panel (V.I.P.), Crossroads in Poplar Bluff, Celebrate Freedom in Holcomb, Mo., Celebrate Recovery in Puxico, Mo., and at his church in Dexter, Mo., where he ministers.
"I've been clean and safe for seven years now," Jameson said. "I owe it all to my beautiful wife Amandrea for introducing me to a man named Jesus Christ."
During Monday's panel, Jameson spoke to current offenders about the impact addiction has on a family, more specifically on children, using first-hand experience to engage with his audience.
Jameson, whose parents were substance abusers, said when he was young the family didn't have money for food. He remembers struggling with hunger and said the only way to satisfy the emptiness in his gut was to head outside and drink as much water as he could to trick his belly into thinking it was full.
Jameson said treasured moments spent tossing a tattered tennis ball against a wall in the trailer park where he lived, pretending to be Ozzie Smith, were the few times during his childhood when he felt "like a normal kid."
"I just want to bring people hope and to get them out of that lifestyle I was stuck in my entire life," Jameson said. "I never knew Jesus, I never knew there was a way out. I felt like I was stuck there my whole life. Then the opportunity presented itself and it changed my whole life."
Jameson is preparing to relocate to South Carolina and received the recognition at the end of his final V.I.P. session surrounded by supporters. Aaron Duncan, a teacher with Poplar Bluff R-1 schools, will be Jameson's replacement as facilitator of the program.
"This award means the world to me. It lets me know I've truly made an impact," he said.
Jameson stressed the importance of finding "your gift." He said everyone has one, whether it's outstanding baseball skills or the ability to sing a beautiful song.
"Everyone in this room has a talent and a gift. Allow yourself to dream until you find out what that gift is," he said.
As a goodbye to the community, his supporters and to current and recovering addicts, Jameson said he wants everyone to remember that it's OK to believe in a higher power and to never stop pursuing their goals.
"Live the dream because it's possible," he said. "With God all things are possible. There's hope for change. There's hope for future. There was a time when I didn't think there was a dream left but now I'm living my dream every day."