Dawnyel’s Story

“My Story Is Still Being Written”

I struggled with drugs and alcohol throughout much of my life. In 2016, I made the difficult decision to have my dad care for my eight-year-old son and went on what I thought would be one last “runner.” While in Las Vegas, I was in a rollover accident and somehow walked away with only a scratch on my knee. I prayed to my higher power that if I made it back to Carson City, I would enter treatment. Driving home through an incredible lightning storm, I continued to pray to something greater than myself. When I made it back, I kept my promise.

I went through detox, entered the Gospel Mission, and graduated from the program in 2017. While there, I also earned my GED. After treatment, I became a house manager at a sober living home and eventually got my son back. I still had consequences from my past to face, but I continued moving forward.

After returning from serving ten days in jail for a past DUI, I was hired as a receptionist at FISH—and that is where I found CIRCLES. For nearly four years, CIRCLES became an important part of my life.

Around the Wednesday night dinner table, I built relationships with people from all walks of life—people I likely never would have known during my addiction. They shared their wisdom, resilience, and life experiences with me. I loved CIRCLES so much that I went through Phase I twice, and my son became part of the CIRCLES family too.

I wish I could say everything from there was butterflies and rainbows, but it wasn’t. Life is real, and sobriety can be hard when you choose to no longer numb the pain. Today, I watch my son face some of the same difficult choices I once faced. As a mom, that has required tough love—setting boundaries, making difficult decisions, and recognizing that I can love him and believe in him, but I cannot make his choices for him. That is something CIRCLES has helped me understand about support. Even when I haven’t been around for a while, when we come back together, it feels like family—the kind that is still there when life gets hard.

Today, I am a case manager at Spirit of Hope, where I get to share my experience, strength, and hope with others who are struggling. I am also studying criminal justice with the dream of becoming a probation officer and helping people who may someday stand in the same shoes I once stood in. My story isn’t perfect, and it isn’t finished. There are still struggles, tough decisions, and days when life hurts. But today, I face those days sober, with support, purpose, and hope. Instead of running from my past, I am using it to help someone else find their way forward.

“For nearly four years, CIRCLES became an important part of my life.” -Dawnyel