The recovering community of South Florida was shocked at the tragic accident and sudden death of Joe Ayala a friend to many and an example to all of us in recovery. Those of us in recovery have learned to live our lives one day at a time and we all realized how fragile our sobriety can be. It is such a tragedy that makes us aware of how fragile our lives are and how very important it is to do the best we can with what we have each day.
Joe understood this and practiced the principles of our program every day. He offered hope and love to all who knew him. As owner of Bridge Back to Life Joe offered a new start to hundreds of recovering alcoholics and addicts. He was the man who would take a chance on the street addicts, the ex-cons, the homeless and the destitute. He always had a good word and positive spiritual message for those who had lost hope.
I did not know Joe well but he was one of those people in the program that truly had the program. When he spoke at meetings my attention immediately increased. He always had valuable information to share. I remember meeting him for business and always feeling better from our time together. I would call and when Joe wasn’t there I would always get a positive, spiritual message on his answering machine. I would joke with him about that but I don’t think he ever knew that from time to time when I needed a lift I would call his number just to hear the positive message for the day. Joe lived in the solution and not in the problem, his life reflected this.
His passing leaves a tremendous void in our community but also leaves a tremendous legacy. He will always be with us in spirit and memory. Every time someone he helped helps another, every time someone shares something that he had shared, every time someone remembers his positive message of hope he will be with us.
{Since I wrote this piece I have been in contact with Joe’s wife Tina. Many people have asked her what they can do to help and she has given this a lot of thought. Tina is currently keeping The Bridge Back to Life running while being a full time mom to her three children. She feels that what the men living there need more than anything is recovering people to talk to.
In order to lighten her own load a little she has decided to ask recovering men to volunteer to spend time in the evenings at The Bridge Back To Life. Tina also would like to hear from Bridge Alumni. It would be great for men who have lived at The Bridge Back to Life to return to work with the new men there.
Tina has also decided to give The Bridge Back to Life a face lift. She plans to renovate interiors, paint and landscape the exterior and generally fix up the property. She hopes to accomplish this with volunteer help. This is a major undertaking and it is an opportunity for those of us in the construction trades to volunteer time and skill to a good cause. Tina would appreciate any donations of materials for this project and could use the help of any merchants willing to work on a wholesale basis.
In my home state of Pennsylvania it was common for the farm community to get together when someone had their barn burn down. They would have a barn raising and the community would be able to do in a day what it would take an individual months to accomplish. This spirit exists in our recovering community and it is time to come together.}