TEAM

MEET THE TEAM

We Believe That Change is Possible and Can Happen Against All Odds

Amanda Crosby Padgett

Director of Operations

On 9/25/2016 I received a call that would forever change my life as well as my daughters. It was the call that no one wishes to receive. The news that my 10-year-old daughter’s father had suddenly passed away. No goodbye, no warning, just gone. The pain I felt for myself was quickly overshadowed by the pain I would have to inflict on my daughter. This beautiful, smart, perfect child would soon feel the amount of pain that no one deserves to feel. And I had to deliver it. This will forever mark the worst day of my life. Watching my daughter’s life change before my eyes were too much to bare but over time we’ve developed healthy ways of dealing with the pain.

The electric energy that Marley and her dad created when they were together was incomparable. He taught her love, compassion, and empathy in everything they did and I will spend the rest of my life reminding her of that. But now we have a new opportunity to apply our passion towards something greater. Something that can help light the way for those in need. I wish I would have known then what I know now but that’s not the way life works sometimes. Marley’s dad will forever be my inspiration for this work and I will continue to do everything I can to have one less child cry for their daddy or one less mother mourn the loss of her child. If I can be a part of something like this, that’s something to be proud of.

Leanne Sandbach

Director of Events and Applicant Coordination

Addiction is something that most of us are familiar with, unfortunately. Whether it is a family member, a friend, themselves, or a loved one who knows someone who struggles with addiction. It’s everywhere.

I will never forget when I got the phone call from Laran telling me of Sean’s passing. The sadness in her voice and hearing those words was heartbreaking. My instant reaction was “How can this be? This can’t be real”. How can he just be gone? I was in shock.

The world is a darker place with Sean no longer part of it. He will be remembered for all of the wonderful things about him that we all loved, not remembered or defined by his addiction. Addiction is scary. It is terribly sad. Loving someone who struggles with it or losing someone you love and care about to addiction is awful, and the reality is that it is far too common. We want to help some way, somehow. We want to help light a path for those who are struggling with addiction to find something they love that will bring them joy, excitement, and purpose. That is our ultimate goal.

Laran Stover

Director of Programming and Outreach

I grew up in St. Pete with two younger brothers. My parents were divorced before any of my childhood memories formed, and each of my parents had a son with their respective spouses. This meant I had a brother at each house. I shuffled between my two homes dutifully every weekend, creating a more distant relationship with each than the normal brother/sister dynamic allows.

Both of my brothers are significantly younger than me (9 and 6 years) and I’ve always had an “old soul”. The age gap lent well to this and I tended to “mother” both of my brothers. In fact, one of the first memories I have of Dylan (6 years younger) is watching him fall out of a neighbor’s tree and carrying him home. This memory is seared into my mind, one of those timeline dots that stick with you forever for no particular reason.

Dylan and I share a greater bond than some siblings in our unfortunate inheritance of anxiety disorders. While Dylan struggled with social anxiety as a child, I suffered from a general anxiety disorder.

Remember that age gap I mentioned earlier? That gap meant I wasn’t around for Dylan when he entered his most formative years. I was off at college, hours away, while he became a teenager. Sadly, this meant I wasn’t there to give him advice on how to deal with his anxiety as he also dealt with the average teenage angst. I wasn’t there to explain to him that there are ways to cope, ways to express and expel those feelings without turning to substance abuse. I wasn’t there to give him life advice, listen to him complain about our parents, or girls, or homework…or anything. I wasn’t there. This reality resonates so deeply in my soul that it is also seared, as a timeline dot, into my very being.

When I met Sean, Dylan was just beginning to get into serious trouble. He was an addict. He was having legal trouble, and was really struggling. Sean listened as I spilled my guts and asked for advice daily. He listened while I expressed the amount of guilt I carried and offered to take some of it from me. Sean was a recovering addict. He understood Dylan in a way I couldn’t. He offered insight and gave me hope. He was living proof that you can live through hell and make it out the other side, scarred but still whole.

The day I found out Sean died was devastating for so many reasons. One that seemed to keep replaying itself in my mind was that he was my proof and now he was gone. He was the proof that Dylan could change, and grow, and become what Sean had become. He could be a friend, a co-worker, a boyfriend, a brother, he could be all of those things and so much more. When Sean died, a part of that hope died for me too. I became consumed with guilt once again, not only surrounding Dylan and the adversity he was facing, but also now with the additional weight of not being there in the right capacity for Sean. Not being there as his friend ENOUGH. Not seeing any of the signs leading up to this day.

And even still, I could so clearly imagine Sean’s own reaction to this news. What would he be saying to me right now? “Laran, this isn’t you’re fault – no one can see these things coming. Be a little easier on yourself, cut yourself some slack.” But, as we both always knew, I am not someone who can be still and do nothing when someone, somewhere, can be helped. Months after his passing, as I stood in front of the mirror brushing my teeth, getting ready to start my day, a small flicker of an idea crossed my mind. What if there was a way to support other people who were silently struggling with addiction? Long after society and all of your peers expect you to be “normal”, to not have thoughts of using, to be completely average….what do you do when you are fighting an internal battle every day? This began my journey into the creation of Purpose Through Passion. I cannot stand by and allow anyone’s friend, family member, or co-worker go through what Sean and Dylan have gone through. I cannot be silent about this when I have the means to help. Get ready world, because “we have not yet begun to fight”.

Shashana Alford

Applicant Coordinator

Growing up in Philadelphia, addiction was too familiar. Watching family and friends do what they could to fight it was painful because I couldn't do much or didn't know what to do. I have tried with a few and saw success which led me to believe that recovery is possible but there is and always work to do. I love being a cheerleader for small businesses and appreciate the opportunity to be involved with their growth. I enjoy bringing to the table hard work, dedication, creativity, enthusiasm and an enchanting energy. Being on the Purpose Through Passion team gives me a chance to do what I love and to help those who are continuing to fight to live a healthier, happier and sober life. We are here for YOU!