| Keith
grew up in a very caring family with both parents, an older brother and
younger sister. As a child, he was the most adventurous and mischievous
of the three siblings. He enjoyed exploring the world around him,
trying new activities in order to keep things from becoming
“booorrriiinnng.” He managed to avoid getting into any serious trouble
due in large part because of his relationship with his parents. He may
have been a bit of a prankster, but he was also very attached to his
mom
and dad. However, the relationship between Keith and his parents began to strain once he reached adolescence. Like many young people, this was a tumultuous period for Keith. Searching for his own identity, he became increasingly concerned about the opinions of his peers and much less so about the opinions of his mom and dad. As a result, communication with his parents became more difficult, more argumentative, and occurred less and less frequently. This was unfortunate because up until this point in Keith's life, he and his parents had not spent much time talking about the risks of substance abuse. Even though he had not talked with his parents much about these risks, Keith had no intention of drinking alcohol or using any other drug when he started middle school. However, he also had never thought about what he would do if he were offered any of these substances. Having not anticipated and prepared for this situation and the many other new experiences that accompany adolescence, Keith started making some questionable choices. He ended up having his first drink of alcohol in eighth grade and then smoked marijuana for the first time in ninth. His use of alcohol and marijuana increased as he progressed through high school. Not only did this further strain his relationship with his parents, but it also affected how he spent his free time. He focused more and more on partying and participated less and less in other activities. He even quit playing soccer, which he had played since the second grade, and never got involved in any other extracurricular activities at school or in the community. Despite this, not all of his choices were bad. Most of the time he got along with his parents. He maintained his academic performance and was the first student in his class to be accepted to college. Unfortunately, one of his choices, the worst one he ever made, eclipsed all the others. His mom and dad got a late night phone call that any parent would dread. Keith was in the hospital in critical condition with severe back and neck injuries. After surviving this choice that nearly cost him his life, Keith began his pursuit of a bachelor’s degree from the Pennsylvania State University. During this time, he began speaking about substance abuse prevention at the middle school that he had once attended. Since then, he has gone on to speak with thousands of students. He graduated from Penn State with a BS in Management Science and Information Systems. He then briefly worked for the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue before starting his own business. He moved to Pittsburgh a few years later to be with his soon-to-be fiancée. Neither the business nor the engagement lasted. He then returned to his hometown in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Starting anew, Keith went back to Penn State to pursue a degree in science. It eventually occurred to him to combine two of his interests, working with students and science. After this realization, he decided to obtain a Masters in Education with a focus in Earth and Space Sciences along with his teacher certification. While pursuing his degree and certification, he shared his story at the middle school where he did student teaching. The first of these presentations went very well. The teacher of the students that he first spoke with recommended him to other teachers at the school because she thought his story was "powerful." The other teachers also thought the presentation was worthwhile. As a result, by the time student teaching was completed, Keith had spoken with nearly all of the students at this school. Furthermore, he was nominated for an Outstanding Student Teacher award at the recommendations of his peers, the professor overseeing his student teaching, and a colleague at the middle school. Keith graduated with his second degree from Penn State five months after completing his student teaching. He had planned to obtain a position teaching Earth and Space Sciences to middle or high school students. He had also planned to give a substance abuse prevention presentation once a year at a school that hired him. Then the day spent celebrating his most recent graduation turned into the worst night of his life. His sister's boyfriend, David, left the celebration to go for a ride on his motorcycle. Tragically, he never returned because he was involved in a head-on collision with a car and had died instantly. David’s death gave Keith a new perspective. Because of Keith's unhealthy risk-taking, he knew what it felt like to cause others to hurt and worry. However, he had never personally experienced how it felt to so suddenly and unexpectedly lose somebody you care about or to watch as a family member suffered due to such a tremendous loss. After David’s death, Keith felt that he should use his experiences to help others avoid a similar loss and to avoid causing their friends and families to suffer. He decided that he could do this best by sharing his story with as many people as possible. |