Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 15, 1995 TAG: 9510140003
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: G-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CECELIA FITZGERALD
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
The program, largely supported through United Way contributions, provides shelter and therapy for alcohol- and chemical-dependent women from this area, as well as for out-of-state clients like me. I am grateful to the residents of the Roanoke Valley for the support they give to Bethany Hall. Because of the opportunity given me at Bethany Hall, I have been able turn my life around, accomplish my life goals and even begin to help others.
I was 27 when I came to Roanoke, after having just finished a 28-day rehab program in Pennsylvania. I had other problems coupled with my addiction that warranted additional treatment away from home. I spent 45 days in the rehab center waiting for a bed at a residential-treatment program. After calls to 47 different programs in seven states, we found an opening at Bethany Hall. Within hours, I was on my way to Roanoke.
I didn't know anything about Roanoke at the time, and I certainly never expected to be embraced by the community the way Roanokers embraced me.
Many people treated me with such kindness, but one example stands out. An advanced stage of Bethany's treatment program includes finding and keeping a job. One day while looking for work, I saw a "Waitress Wanted" sign in the window at Mike's Restaurant on Kirk Avenue in downtown Roanoke. The small lunch counter, run by a Korean family, is frequented by bankers and other downtown businesspeople. The restaurant hired me immediately and I started the next day. The owner and his family knew I was in treatment, and provided a supportive and loving environment. They took me, an out-of-towner all alone, into their family.
I also got to know the customers, many of whom were Dominion Bank employees. I shared with them my hope that one day I could continue the banking career I had left in Pennsylvania and work for Dominion Bank.
I continued to work at Mike's for several months after completing the treatment program at Bethany Hall. Eventually I decided to quit my waitressing job to go back to school, and shared the news with those customers whom I considered friends. On one of my last days at Mike's, just before Christmas, the customers from Fink's Jewelers asked me to come by the Jefferson Street store after work. When I got there, they surprised me with a brand new typewriter, a gift to help me with my schoolwork. The employees had taken a collection to buy it.
Within two years, I had earned an associate's degree in business administration at Virginia Western Community College and graduated with a 4.0 grade point average. Soon after, I fulfilled my dream of working for Dominion Bank, which by this time had become part of First Union National Bank. I began working as a personal-service representative in the bank's credit-card area. This part-time job allowed me to continue my education at Virginia Tech, where I will complete a bachelor's degree in management and finance in December.
I will be the first person in my family to get a four-year college degree.
While at Virginia Western, I met my husband, David. He also was a recovering alcoholic, who had come to Roanoke from Augusta, Ga., to attend the treatment program at the Hegira House. Recovery is something we share. Alcohol and drug addiction is an experience that profoundly affects one's life, and having a partner who can truly understand and support me with the daily challenges of recovery is essential.
He also is an achiever. After he received his associate's degree at Virginia Western, he went on to Roanoke College, where he earned a degree in English and graduated 16th in his class. Because of David, we expect to leave Roanoke in February: He has been awarded a Fulbright scholarship to study in Sydney, Australia.
Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that my life would turn out this way - that I would be given the opportunities I have been.
I have tried to find ways to give back. As a beneficiary of a United Way-funded program, I have spoken to employee groups about the importance of giving to United Way, and I serve on Bethany Hall's board of directors. These are two ways I feel I can contribute. But the biggest contribution I can make to Bethany Hall is to make something of my life.
I am 33 now and it's time for me to take that next step, to move past recovery and on to the rest of my life. Unfortunately, I must leave Roanoke to do that.
I have been totally blessed by my experience here. Although I am closing this chapter of my life, there will always be a special place in my heart for the people of the Roanoke Valley.
Because of Bethany Hall and the caring, generous people here, I have been able to achieve what I have. This article is an opportunity for me to express my gratitude. Thank you.
Cecelia Fitzgerald is a part-time employee of First Union National Bank of Virginia and a full-time student at Virginia Tech.