This episode is different. There’s no guest and no interview, just the story behind why Got a Light? exists.

Addiction has shaped my life since childhood. I lost my father to suicide when I was 12 after his struggle with a methamphetamine addiction. In the years that followed, I watched my mom struggle with alcohol, drugs, depression, overdoses, suicide attempts, DUIs and treatment.

For a long time, addiction represented nothing but darkness to me: loss, fear, anger, shame, helplessness and isolation. I wanted to escape my past and the community where so much of it happened.

But over time, my perspective changed.

Through hearing stories of recovery, witnessing people rebuild their lives and seeing the power of connection, I began to understand that addiction does not have to be the end of someone's story.

That realization became the foundation of Got a Light?

This podcast exists to give people a place to honestly share their experiences with addiction, recovery, loss and redemption and to use those stories to reach people who may still be struggling in silence.

My mission is simple: bring connection and light into a place that can feel incredibly dark.

I want the person struggling with addiction to know they aren't alone. I want families and loved ones to hear perspectives that help them better understand addiction and recovery. I want children growing up around addiction to hear that someone understands what they're experiencing. I want people in recovery to have a platform to show what life on the other side can look like.

I can't change what happened to my family or rewrite my childhood. But I can choose what I do with it.

The darkness of addiction shaped me. Now I want to use it to help carry a light for someone else.

That's why I started Got a Light?

Because your story could be someone else's light.

From Under the Bridge to a Life of Purpose | Matthew’s 35-Year Journey Through Addiction and Recovery.

For 35 years, Matthew lived in the grip of addiction. Alcohol, drugs, homelessness, broken relationships, jail, shame, and isolation became his reality. His darkest moments were spent living under a bridge, convinced he was beyond saving and hoping he simply wouldn’t wake up the next morning.

Today, nearly nine years sober, Matthew shares the story of how everything changed. In one of the most powerful conversations on Got a Light?, Matthew opens up about childhood trauma, growing up with an addicted father, the need for acceptance that fueled his addiction, and how isolation nearly killed him. He explains why addiction was never really about alcohol or drugs—it was about trying to escape himself.

Together, Rich and Matthew explore the themes that connect nearly every recovery story: shame, loneliness, identity, purpose, faith, surrender, and the healing power of genuine human connection.

Rather than offering easy answers, Matthew shares the difficult lessons learned through decades of pain and how those same experiences have become the foundation for helping others find hope.

If you’ve ever struggled with addiction, loved someone who has, or simply wondered how someone can rebuild a life after losing everything, this conversation is for you.

Because no matter how dark the night becomes, there is always a light waiting to be found.

In this episode of Got a Light?, Rich sits down with Bryce, who is nearly one year sober after a devastating addiction to nitrous oxide, also known as whippets.

Bryce shares how boredom, pain, and easy access led him into a habit that quickly took over his life. What started as a way to numb physical pain eventually cost him money, relationships, freedom, and nearly his ability to walk. After experiencing psychosis, paralysis, a coma, and homelessness, Bryce finally reached the point where he knew something had to change.

His turning point came through faith, surrender, and the decision to ask for help. Since entering the Good News Rescue Mission, Bryce has rebuilt his life through community, prayer, mentorship, and a renewed relationship with God. Now eleven months sober, walking again, preparing for heavy equipment school, and reconnecting with family and friends, Bryce’s story is a powerful reminder that it is never too late to choose life.

This conversation is about addiction, isolation, shame, forgiveness, faith, recovery, and the strength it takes to ask for help.