By Edward Henderson
The road to recovery from addiction is never a straight and narrow journey. It has many twists, turns and detours. It can often feel like you’ve been traveling for days only end up right back where you started. San Diego natives Jonnie Branch-Durham and Valentina Hughes-Stevens can attest to this metaphor all too well. Despite the hardships, stumbles and setbacks, however, today these two woman have conquered addiction. Their compasses are now set towards a Master’s Degree in Certified Rehabilitation Counseling with a specialty in Psychiatric Counseling from San Diego State University. Equipped with the lessons they’ve learned along the way, Jonnie and Valentina plan to use their degrees to help others on their path out of the darkness of addiction towards new and unlimited possibilities.
Jonnie Branch-Durham (Southeast, Encanto)
The product of a bi-racial family, Jonnie and her four siblings had to grow up fast in order to assist their illiterate parents in Encanto. She spent most of her days tagging along with her older sisters to parties where alcohol and marijuana were constantly available. She felt at home attending these parties due to the excitement of the scene and emotional unavailability of her parents. Boys also caught Jonnie’s attention and at 15, she became pregnant with her daughter. At 17, Jonnie was first introduced to crack cocaine and her battle with addiction began.
“At first it wasn’t a big deal because I did it every once and a while,” said Jonnie. “But then it went from recreation, to abuse, to dependence. The next thing you know I can’t stop.”
At 19, the spiral towards Jonnie’s rock bottom intensified when her addiction became so bad, child protective services took her daughter out of her custody. She cycled in and out of the prison system between 1996 and August 23rd 2003 when she was parolled for the last time.
“I really wanted to stop. My daughter was an adult and my family was wondering why I couldn’t get it together,” said Jonnie. “It’s been a journey ever since.”
She went to a detox program in December, 2003 in order to get clean and has been to this day. While in prison, Jonnie completed her GED and it put her in a position to continue her education. After a struggle to find work with her criminal record, Jonnie found employment as a driver while she attended courses on drug and alcohol counseling. Her scholarly ambitions continued in 2007 attending City College for her associates degree, then eventually achieved her bachelors from Springville College.
Currently Jonnie is married, works with male inmates implementing her counseling skills while enrolled at SDSU and is rebuilding her relationship with her daughter and 9 year old Grandson.
“I’m trying not to parent out of guilt,” said Jonnie. “I notice that she has some of the same character defects that I do. All I can do today is be the best person that I can. I can’t take back anything from the past.”
Valentina Hughes-Stephens
The oldest of three siblings, Valentina was raised by single mother in Southeast near Lincoln High School. She never knew her biological father the path towards using drugs began after a male in the household took advantage of her sexually.
“Early on my issues were with relationships. No matter how bad you were to me verbally or physically I just felt the need to have the male in my life that I never had,” said Valentina. “The need to fit in and mistaking love for lust caused me to use.”
From that point, Valentina dropped out of school, began experimenting with marijuana and supported her habits through theft and shelling illegal items. Her wakeup call came when she was offered 14 years imprisonment by a judge after years of bouncing in and out of the system.
She began treatment for her addictions in 2001 but suffered a relapse upon her release. The second time around the following year and coupled with support from her family, she was successful in her rehabilitation. Valentina has been clean for 13 years, is married and is a proud grandmother to her son’s young child.
“I used for over 20 years, pushed a cart for 10 and did over 10 years of prison time combined,” Valentina said. “If you told me 13 years ago this is where I’d be today I wouldn’t believe you.”
Meeting at the Crossroads
Like Jonnie, Valentina achieved her GED while she was in prison. The two Southeast natives met for the first time in a rehabilitation facility and formed a close bond over their stories of overcoming addiction and their desire to further their education.
“I don’t have a lot of relationships where I’m close to somebody. I can trust her with everything and I know she genuinely cares about me and loves me,” said Valentina.
They attended Springville College together and accompanied each other to class every week. The idea to pursue their masters from SDSU was sparked by Valentina’s husband Paul who was already enrolled in the program. The journey hasn’t been an easy one. The rigors of coursework coupled with Jonnie’s older brother being murdered last May has caused a lot of stress. However, their sisterly bond has been a source of strength through it all.
“There’ve been days we wanted to quit but we stick together and we talk each other through it,” said Jonnie. “I know that we’re going to be able to use our education and our experience to help people.”
After graduation Jonnie plans to advance professionally in supervising in director position working with department of rehab or veterans hospital. Valentina plans to focus on using her concentration in mental health to support family.
“My goal is to role model that it doesn’t matter where you come from or what you’ve done in the past. I truly believe that everything I’ve gone through makes me the person I am today,” said Jonnie.
“Be supportive and don’t give up on your loved ones,” added Valentina.
