Teen Challenge Helps Young Men Overcome Addiction
BROCKTON (CBS) - Teen Challenge Brockton has worked for decades to help men addicted to drugs change their lives.
Two young men who have spent years struggling with drug abuse, made the decision to enter the 15-month residential program.
Cody Gavin, 21, began smoking marijuana at just 12 years old. An athlete, he was prescribed Percocet following a hockey injury at 17 and quickly saw his drug use spiral out of control. Before entering Teen Challenge, he tells WBZ, "I was doing two to three grams of fentanyl a day."
Gavin was arrested for committing several crimes. The arresting officer happened to be his high school resource officer, and the person who convinced him to enter Teen Challenge.
"I made Cody promise me that if he wanted to change his life he would do it," Lakeville Police Sgt. Ryan Maltais.
Curran Tierney, 23, also started with marijuana very young, at just 13 years old. By the time he was 19 he says, "I was addicted to five or six substances, 12 medications all at once." Tierney's mother documented 13 overdoses before she eventually stopped counting.
"We've almost lost him a number of times. He's been "Narcaned" back to life," she said.
Tierney and Gavin are two of 70 men currently enrolled in Teen Challenge Brockton. Both are making great strides and are expected to graduate in the spring.
For decades, Teen Challenge has helped drug addicts transform their lives. There are 10 locations in New England and more than 200 nationwide.
"As long as you're still here, there's hope," Curran Tierney said.