By Staff
Just when they thought everyone had given up on them — and that they had let everyone down — Glenda Lee and Richard Durham found a way out.
But it certainly wasn’t the easy way out. Lee and Durham both spent long months in Escambia County’s drug court, held accountable day and night for their actions.
Both will be on hand Friday when drug court celebrates the graduation of three more people who have worked hard to turn their lives around.
Escambia County’s drug court was one of the first in the state, and it now serves as a mentor court for other counties hoping to start similar programs.
Funded largely by donations and grants, the court offers a chance for people who have fallen into the wrong path to get their lives back on track.
Lee and Durham both said they had been addicts for years when they entered drug court, and the strict regulations and support they received helped them finally put that lifestyle behind them.
Drugs are such a prevalent part of life in our community. Day after day we hear stories about the problems they cause for families, businesses and individuals.
Drug court is an alternative to jail, but no one should mistake it for an easy alternative. It is long and hard, but it gives people a chance to become productive members of society.
If you have a chance on Friday, head to the Escambia County courthouse at 10 a.m. to help celebrate drug court’s graduation — and the three people whose lives have been given a new lease on life. Hopefully, they will make the most of it, as Durham and Lee have.