Back to the team…
Meet
Max Etienne
Program Staff
I grew up in a church-going home with a family that loved me very much. Despite their care, I chose to do what I wanted. I wanted to fit in at school and in the neighborhood where I was raised, so I started sneaking around and doing what I knew was wrong. At the time, it felt good—I had friends, and I was accepted. Before long, I started getting high and diving into that lifestyle. I thought I was cool now.
At a young age, I got married and had a child. Hoping for a fresh start, we decided to move to Utah, thinking a change in zip codes would fix my destructive lifestyle. What I didn’t realize was that no matter where I went, I took myself with me. The problem wasn’t where I was; the problem was me. Shortly after moving to Utah, I got involved with people who were committing crimes and getting high. I was all in. I didn’t care about anything or anyone—it was all about me.
For a long time, I struggled to find recovery and escape the chaos of my life. My life revolved around jail, drugs, and violence. Every time I got out of jail, I’d tell myself, “This is it. I’m done with this life of destruction.” But I always fell back into my old patterns, trapped in a revolving cycle I thought I’d never break. For over 20 years, I destroyed my life and caused pain to the people I claimed to love the most.
At 40 years old, I knew I needed to do something different. After being arrested one last time, I heard about The Other Side Academy, a 2½-year therapeutic community for people like me. I’d never done anything like it before, but I decided to write them a letter. Now, here I am!
At The Other Side Academy, I learned to be accountable, honest, and to hold others accountable. I learned to do the right thing, even when no one was watching. These were all things I’d never done before. My addiction was never the focus because drugs weren’t my real problem—my behaviors were. Years of negative behaviors had led to the destruction of my life. I had to reinvent myself by building positive habits and practicing them every day.
As our Director, Dave Durocher, says, “Do good every day for a long period of time until you become good.” For five years, I followed the rules, listened to my mentors, and did the right thing. It wasn’t easy—it was uncomfortable—but it worked.
Today, I’m a leader in the house, teaching younger students the same lessons I was taught. I was even hired as program staff, something I never thought possible. Being part of this team, which I now call my family, is an incredible blessing. The Other Side Academy saved my life, and now I’m here to help save others.
“If you want to be successful and have what we have, then do what we did.”
Thank you, TOSA!