A Husband's Struggles and Triumphs

John Ellis and his wife, Yvette Ellis, were married Sept 11, 1993, yes 911. A well-known Columbus couple, Ellis works at the Columbus Urban League with first-time juvenile offenders and Yvette Ellis is often contracted for several intervention programs. However, before their successes and wedded bliss, came their struggles.

The couple were best friends for years before falling in love and starting a family of two daughters and a son. Unfortunately, children were not the only common element that brought them together, the pair also smoked crack cocaine.

"I think part of it was my fault," Ellis said of his wife's eventual addiction. John's music industry job meant lots of travel and time away from his partner.

"We kept going to church," he said, "despite smoking on the Saturday night before". Eventually, Ellis saw the toll the couple's drug use was taking on their family. "The hardest thing was watching how it hurt our children," he said.

Noticing they had developed a problem, he and Yvette Ellis made a pact to quit using drugs. Unfortunately, the deal failed and the two separated for a time.

Sick of abusing his own body, Ellis quit using drugs and got temporary custody of the children. Yvette Ellis' drug usage got worse.

Photographs of that time show the family's struggle. Looking back at the photos Ellis remembers, "my children lost the glow in their eyes and Yvette's frame appeared skeletal."

As Yvette Ellis' addiction developed she began having dreams of death and overdose. John Ellis' concern for his best friend and wife grew. He knew she needed help. Ellis contacted Maryhaven in desperation. He knew if he did not get Yvette Ellis help soon he could lose her to the drug that has claimed the lives of many others.

During his wife's time at Maryhaven, Ellis and his family went to family sessions where he learned more about addiction and recovery. What he learned there inspired him to help others. "Maryhaven proved to be Yvette's saving grace, it saved my family," Ellis remembered.

Over time, Yvette Ellis made an outstanding recovery. They soon married, she earned her bachelor's degree and became a minister as well. She also gave back to Maryhaven, the program that saved her life, by working in its detox program later becoming a counselor for adolescents and moving on to work with women in treatment for years. Her current goal is helping women to achieve their own goals through her ministry program, "Woman with a Vision."

John and Yvette's children reflect their parents' successes. Yaves, the pair's son is a graduate of The Ohio State University, musician, and motivational speaker who travels the country speaking about his childhood and what it has taught him while his sisters Christina and Charlie attend college.

Ellis stressed that without long-term care from Maryhaven for his wife, his family would not be where they are today.

"ADAMH and Maryhaven are catalysts that God used," he said.

Ellis will speak at ADAMH's Recovery Month Kick-Off on September 2 at the Columbus Health Department located at 240 Parsons Avenue, Columbus. Registration for the event begins 8:30 a.m. For more information or to RSVP for the event, please contact Ajamu' Brown at 614.222.3742.