This couple beat drug addiction and just graduated college. Together twenty years ago, Renate and Charles Cole were struggling to raise a family while addicted to crack. Their son Charles Cole III says their addiction took a huge toll on the family, "Both my parents were in and out of jail as part of their addiction. We were homeless, I lived in a bunch of homeless shelters with my family and helped raise my little brother and sister." Cole says his mother finally took steps to get clean when he was in junior high and pushed his father to do the same. "She had a very frank conversation with my father that if he didn't get his stuff together she was going to leave and move on. Then one thing I can't deny is how much he loves my mom because once she really said she'd leave he got it together. Without a program, like he just stopped." The two are now clean and rebuilding their lives together. One selfie at a time. They were motivated by their son to go back to school. After seeing him graduate and start work on his PHD, "The funny thing about this story is I had no idea that they were thinking about going back to school. I know that they saw what I was doing and they would like tell me how proud they were and how happy they were, but I didn't know that it touched them in this way to lead to this level of action." Cole says he is happy for his parents and hopes their story can inspire others, "Your past doesn't have to dedicate what your future is. It may not be a pretty straight line but don't allow the issues from your past to stop youfrom being great in the future.15
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