of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
ADDICTION RECOVERY FIRESIDE - DIXON & SHARETTE FAMILIES, 11/22/20
The Dixon Family
The Dixon family of five adult children (and twelve grandchildren) feel their recovery journey with the
12-steps has been one of the greatest tools they ever discovered to help their family heal from the
effects of addiction and codependency. The whole family has benefitted from recovery principles and
practices! Preston and Tyson, the oldest of the Dixon children, suffered from an opioid addiction fifteen
years ago and the family began attending ARP (addiction recovery program) meetings sponsored by the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to learn how to help them. Shortly after Rick and Christy
were called to serve as ARP service missionaries and still enjoy that opportunity today.
Preston and Tyson are both in long-term recovery for over ten years and are very involved in
professional addiction recovery treatment as owners of the Renaissance Ranch addiction recovery
treatment centers. Both have also enjoyed serving as facilitators/sponsors in the ARP and AA programs.
Today the Dixon’s are passionate about sharing the hope of recovery with others and love sharing their
combined witness that when recovery is coupled with the Savior Jesus Christ, miracles can happen!
The Sharette Family
Dave and Carolyn Sharette are the parents of seven children -- one girl and six boys -- who are now adults ranging in age from 28 to 37. As a young convert to the LDS faith, Dave served a mission and he and Carolyn married soon after his return, excited to build a family grounded in the gospel of Jesus Christ. Carolyn and Dave taught their children gospel principles and appreciated the structure and the Spirit the gospel brought to their home and their young family. Difficult times evolved as many of their children began to struggle with addiction as early teens, which in some of them developed into life-threatening addictions to alcohol, heroin, cocaine and meth persisting over a decade.
After seeking help wherever they could, including in over a dozen rehab programs during these trying years, the family was divinely led to the 12 steps and finally started to find peace and healing. As each impacted family member individually and simultaneously started working on their own 12-step programs, healing began. Carolyn and Dave learned to "let go and let God” to do HIS work with themselves and with their boys. This freed them to find new ways to express their love and start to understand each other. As their boys worked their steps as part of a comprehensive program that acknowledged and addressed the fact that they had a biological brain disease, they have found peace, healing, and sobriety.
The Sharettes’ message is one of hope to families who struggle with addiction. "Healing and recovery are possible when we seek to understand addiction as a biological brain disease and then seek spiritual solutions to have our shortcomings removed through the atonement of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Great Healer, and through Him, we can have our peace and hope restored. We promise that you, whether you struggle with addiction yourself or are struggling because of the addiction of a loved one, can be restored to a beautiful, meaningful life".