by Nina Zhao
Mike Alfonso Gamez grew up with his single mother and two younger siblings. Although his mother worked, he has many memories of her having to ask family and friends for help covering the financial costs of raising children. From a young age, he had dreams of being financially stable. Growing up, many of his family members sold drugs. “As long as I can remember – since 11 or 12 – I was already drinking, smoking, holding [substances] for somebody,” he said. At about 14 or 15 years old, Mike started dealing drugs. “As soon as I got a taste of that fast money, there was no stopping it.”
At 16, Mike went to the Rhode Island Training School, the state’s juvenile correctional program. He spent six months there before going back to the streets and continuing the same behaviors. When Mike was 20, he became a father. “While I was gone [in prison], she was good and had all the stuff she wanted, but I wasn’t there.” This time in his life showed Mike that it’s not all about money and material items; “I could have created memories with her,” he now realizes. “So at the end of the day, yeah, she got what she wanted, but when I got home, she didn’t care about that.”
As time went on and he kept cycling through prison and jail, Mike saw how his actions were affecting the people he loved. After a while, Mike decided it was time to find a more stable job that could provide for him and his family without the risks that came with selling drugs. He got a small box truck and used it to do house deliveries. He admits, however, that even during this time, he still “had one foot in the door and one out,” referring to his ties with the streets. By 2017, he was 26 years old and back in prison.
Mike started the Phoenix Project program in Rhode Island’s minimum security facility in late 2018. Although Phoenix was known to be “a strict program,” it was also “one of the best programs I took while I was incarcerated,” Mike said. He found great value in “the simple fact that the staff members like Kathy really cared and really gave you life tools that you would need to succeed.” Mike described Kathy as “one of my biggest supporters. It’s a blessing. It’s something that really changed my life.” These relationships have also made him think of others like him. “That’s why it’s so important to pass it down to other formerly incarcerated men and women. Some people can really change for the better,” he said.
When Mike came home in 2019, he decided to truly commit to working in the trucking industry, and he started working toward his Commercial Driving License (CDL). Although it’s been hard work, he’s proud of how far he’s come. “I just go hard and give it my all,” he said. In regards to staying clean from drugs, he focuses on keeping himself busy and staying self-aware. He believes, “nobody’s perfect,” but “if you don’t have self-awareness, it’s tough.” When he feels himself slipping into old habits, he recognizes it and works to get himself back on track. He knows and avoids the “people, places, and things” that he recognizes as his own triggers.
Like other Phoenix Project graduates I’ve talked to, Mike still uses lessons from the Phoenix Project to set short-term goals and long-term goals. Recently, Mike went to the car dealership and bought his company a new car, which is not something he’s ever done before. It’s moments like these that remind him how far he’s come. “Sometimes it’s stressful because it’s hard to compare it to that type of money [selling drugs]. But you just change and you start looking at things like time and family and being respected by your peers and being a role model.” These days, he focuses on working hard and constantly trying to be “a better person than I was last year.”
Now 33 years old, “I’ve been through hell and back,” he said, but he still feels that he has time to turn his life into what he wants it to be. “It’s a blessing and a curse that I started so young.” He got involved in the streets at such a young age, when he was so vulnerable to making detrimental decisions. Even so, “now that I look back at my life,” he said, “I wouldn’t really want to change anything because it wouldn’t be the same.” Unfortunately, Mike said, “sometimes something bad has to happen for something good to happen.”
In the streets, his goal was always to make money. “I always just wanted to be comfortable.” Now, “I still want the same things, but I’m just making the money in a different way.” Reflecting on his time selling drugs, Mike said, “I was really ruining lives.” The heartbreak and pain he witnessed on the streets made him think, “there’s more to life than just that.” He didn’t feel proud of the hurt that he saw coming out of his actions. “So now I’m trying to make [money] in a way that’s not as fast, but I really try to cherish it.”
Throughout our conversation, Mike stressed how his self-awareness has helped him change his life for the better and keep him on track. He is proud of how he has found balance between having fun and enjoying life while working hard and staying clean. Mike’s time in the streets and in prison has shown him the value of quality time with his loved ones, and he recognizes that nothing can replace that.
We are proud to call Mike one of our own and excited to see him continue to grow and achieve his goals. Thank you for your time, Mike!
