CLEVELAND — In the last 15 years, thousands of drug-dependent defendants brought before Judge David Matia and other Cuyahoga County Drug Court judges had a choice: Go to jail, or enter the drug court's rehabilitation program.
"It's really the most fulfilling part of my job to see people come in who are really broken and alone and guide them to the first steps of recovery," Matia says. "We like to say in Drug Court, 'We hold you accountable until you're able to do it on your own.'"
The program has saved countless lives and graduated many into sober living.
"Oh yes, we're saving lives, and what I really love is we're saving the next generation, because most of the people in drug court have kids," Matia told us. "Now they've got at least one parent to help them with their homework, to teach them about life, to guide them to be productive individuals themselves."
To mark his milestone 60th birthday on Oct. 25, Judge Matia is going to use two wheels to help "Break the Cycle."
"I thought, 'We've been doing drug court for 15 years, and people still don't know where to go when they're ready to begin their sobriety journey. So let's do a 60-plus-mile ride throughout the county, visiting all of our treatment providers to show people where they can go when they're ready to start their recovery,'" Matia explained.
He'll bike to treatment centers throughout Cuyahoga County to raise awareness and funds for Project 180, the drug court alumni program organized by graduates to create a support system for those in recovery to find fun, safe, sober events and gatherings.
Project 180 relies on donations, so in addition to raising awareness, Matia's Break the Cycle ride inspired others to start a fundraising effort for the organization through Recovery Resources. Donations can be made at the Recovery Resources website by choosing Project 180 as the funding recipient.
On Oct. 25, Matia will begin his ride to 10 treatment centers throughout the county.
"I'm going to hit Community Assessment Treatment Services on Broadway. I'm going to cross the river and hit Recovery Resources, then I'm going to hit Keating Center on Broadway, Brook Park in Broadview, then Matt Talbot over on State Road in Parma," Matia said of his plan. "Then way out to Spring and Pearl (to) visit LACADA, back up on the Rocky River Reservation, all the way to the Lantern, then to Edna House, then to Stella Maris, and then I'll finish up at the Diversion Center on 55th and Hitchcock Center for Women on Ansel."
The ride is just over 64 miles, and he plans to do it all in one day.
"Maybe 15 minutes a stop," he noted. "That's 2 1/2 hours right there, so we're going to have to cut the chit chat down."
Matia is an avid trail cyclist, but this will be his first real road trip, dedicated to the people he's watched break their own cycles.
"You know the phrase, 'You save one life, you save the world?' I like to say we've saved a couple of planets at this point," he said.