Now going on eight years clean, Anthony Sideri volunteers at the local soup kitchen and speaks to high school students to encourage them not to fall down the path he took.
Anthony Sideri/CNN iReport
Sideri first started using alcohol and marijuana in high school, "thinking I was in total control of my life and my future."
Anthony Sideri/CNN iReport
After high school, he moved on to narcotic painkillers. When that no longer did the trick, he turned to heroin.
Courtesy Anthony Sideri
At 23, Sideri was snorting heroin every day, feeling "like I had it hidden from everybody."
Courtesy Anthony Sideri
On July 22, 2007, Sideri and a fellow addict robbed a bank to fuel their highs. These are the mugshots from his arrest. He spent a year in court-ordered rehab and 22 months in jail.
Courtesy Anthony Sideri
After his release, Sideri found happiness again. He married Jenna Buco, "the girl of his dreams," in 2011.
Courtesy William Tangorra Photography
Sideri has a daughter and is attending school to become a substance abuse counselor. "It is so important for my daughter to see how I turned my life around."
