GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Grand Rapids Community College shined a light on a recent graduate who overcame adversity in the pursuit of a long-term goal.
Recalling the days he spent alone, suffering from alcoholism and sleeping in his car, Matt Wilkinson said a pandemic-era program ultimately put him on a more sustainable path forward.
“One thing just kind of led to another,” Wilkinson said.
Though, just several years earlier, he admitted, the man staring back at him in the mirror was an altogether different person.
“I lost my job and my career because of a DUI,” he said. “I had nowhere to go, no friends or family to stay with, no money. I was clueless.”
The year was 2019 and, struggling with alcoholism, Wilkinson had turned to sleeping in his car. By his own admission, he’d hit rock bottom.
“I was essentially, out in the cold, nothing going for me,” he said.
The slide that got him there began long prior. Wilkinson was then fresh-off his first two semesters at Ferris State University, where he had decided to pursue a career as a golf pro.
“My priorities got mixed up,” he explained. “It was a lot easier to drink and party than it was to go to class.”
Then came coronavirus, the shutdowns and the social upheaval. With them, the need to make a change hit Wilkinson like a ton of bricks.
“I had nothing left to lose,” he recalled. “I have only one direction to go now, which is forward. So, am I going to live? Or am I going to die? I’ve got to make a choice.”
At last, Wilkinson had found a ladder. Learning he qualified for free college tuition through 'Futures for Frontliners'—a state program benefitting essential workers launched during the pandemic—the stars began to align.
“I thought, well, my goodness, it's all coming together,” he said. “The next thing I know, I'm enrolling in classes, thinking, wow, I'm a college student again.”
In his late 40s, Wilkinson was going back to school. Enrolling in classes at Grand Rapids Community College, the newly-minted student turned to his own life-long battle and lessons learned along the way to determine his path forward.
He ultimately earned a certificate in addiction studies and an associate degree in pre-psychology.
Making daily strides in his personal recovery also, Wilkinson now works as a recovery coach. There’s a feeling his life has come full circle.
“The hope is there,” he said, appealing to those who may, even now, be navigating similarly treacherous circumstances. “The resources are there. The path is there. All hope is not lost here.”
For more information, visit the Grand Rapids Community College website.
To learn more about the Futures for Frontliners program, click here.
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