Mother, son find redemption through Anderson County Recovery Court
Randall Rhodey joined his fellow Recovery Court graduate and mother Susie Rhodey at a celebration of his recent Anderson County Recovery Court graduation. (photo:Submitted )
“For all of you who never gave up hope, I’ll be eternally grateful,” he said in an Anderson County Courthouse court room surrounded by Easter décor, cake, chicken and pigs in blankets.
He said he had realized his life of addiction had no future for him.
“If I keep going, the only retirement I’ll have is the graveyard, the county jail or the pen,” he said.
Rhodey told The Courier News the structure of the programs along with the support from staff and other participants at both the Anderson County and Morgan County recovery courts, combined to help him.
He said the greatest challenge in his recovery process was facing the death of his father and going through grief.
“I couldn’t face doing this without my Daddy,” he said of recovery.
He said he was anxious about what comes next, but has plans.
Rhodey is starting training for being a certified peer-recovery specialist.
He said he first tried recovery in 2017, but failed. His second attempt started in 2021.
He recounted difficulties along the way to recovery, including a suicide attempt and a fight.
He advised others recovering from addiction not to give up and to build a network of support.
“All glory be to God,” he said.
His mother, Susie Rhodey, was on hand to celebrate. She earlier graduated from the same Anderson County Recovery Court program in 2010.
“It saved my life,” she said. “That’s all I can say is if it had not been for the drug court team accepting me into the drug court, I don’t know where I’d be today.
“I had to change everything in my life,” she said.
She advised her son as he went through the program not to use.
“Don’t go around your old playmates,” she said recounting her advice to her son. “Stay away from old playgrounds. Go to the meetings. Do what you’ve got to do and stay in the moment. It’s a just-for-today thing.”
She said she, too, had difficulties with old associates with whom she’d used drugs in the past.
She said she lost custody of her daughter during her addiction, but afterwards she got her back. She also said the recovery process helped her figure out who she was and what hobbies she liked to do.
