By Karenlyn Barone, Jacquie Rath and Mike Schnitzel
Triathlete shows Lynbrook students how to make positive choices
He was addicted to drugs and alcohol for 13 years. He came to Lynbrook schools last Friday in conjunction with the Fly With The Owls Walk/Run, to tell how his addiction took him from star athlete to superstar loser. And the most important part of his story - the one that impressed the students the most - is how he turned his life around and raced back to a healthier-than-ever recovery.
He's Todd Crandell, 39, founder of Racing for Recovery and he brought his message of positive choices to the auditoriums and gyms of Lynbrook High School, South and North Middle Schools.
"Anybody here want to grow up and be a drug addict or an alcoholic," he asked the students. Not one student's hand went up.
"Well, because of choice I made, that's where I ended up," said Crandell.
He took the children through the graphic, detailed journey of an addict. He told them how he started drinking in eighth grade at a party. The second time he touched alcohol, he drank a whole bottle of Jack Daniels and ingested pills.
"Then every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, I drank to a point where I couldn't remember," said Crandell. "My grades suffered, I lost my friends and I got in trouble with the police."
By 16, his addiction had escalated, and by his senior year in high school, on the way to a hockey game, he got caught snorting cocaine on the bus.
"I got kicked out of school, I got kicked out of my house, and I ended up living in my car," said Crandell, who told the students he always thought he would grow up to be a professional hockey player.
After several more years of addiction, isolation and numbness, Crandell was arrested for the last time. He had finally hit rock bottom and started the long climb back up. Through the help of an aggressive rehabilitation program, Crandell conquered his demons.
"Living without drugs and alcohol is the best thing I ever did," he said. He is now married, owns a home in Ohio and is the proud father of four children.
"I'm not here to lecture you," he told the students, "I'm here to share my story.. And if only one of you listens and your life changes, that's a good thing. Remember, when you are drug and alcohol free, you can achieve anything."
Crandell promotes positive choices, and a healthy lifestyle. He is now an avid runner and a triathlete who competes around the world. He was invited to speak to the students by Lynbrook resident and runner Kathleen Hannon. A graduate of Lynbrook High School, she read about Crandell and for the past three years has organized a Racing for Recovery event on Long Island. This year, she invited him to be part of the Fly with the Owls Walk/ Run and bring his message to the children of the community she loves so much.
"He's just amazing and his message is so important," she said.
The students at Lynbrook South Middle School thought so, too. Almost every student raised his or her hand to ask Crandell questions, and were thrilled when he handed out Racing for Recovery bracelets, hats and shirts.
"He was great," said Jon Skewes, an eighth-grader. "He tells you what will really happen if you do drugs."
Chelsea Miller was equally impressed.
"I got a lot out of it," she said. "I know [Crandell's message] will stay with me."
Crandell invited the students to run with him at the event the next day and many of the 700 participants were students who he had reached out to the day before.
Liz Frawley, 13, said "This was inspiring."
Comments about this story? KBarone@liherald.com or (516) 569- 4000 Ext. 202.
