Built By The Red Stick

In Episode 122, Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Jeramy Lyles for a conversation about recovery, professional purpose and the discipline required to rebuild your life. Jeramy works with Nova Vital Recovery, where he helps represent the organization, educate communities about available treatment services and connect people with resources that can help them begin their recovery journey...

In Episode 121, Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Rebecca “Smiley” Whitehead for an honest conversation about addiction, recovery, and rebuilding your life when everything feels like it has gone off the rails. Smiley shares parts of her journey, the difficult lessons she learned along the way, and what it took to begin moving in a better direction. Her story is a reminder that no matt...

In Episode 120, Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Jacob Still for an honest conversation about addiction, close calls, consequences, and the moments that can completely change the direction of a person’s life. Jacob shares his experiences, the lessons he learned along the way, and what it took to recognize that life was giving him another opportunity. It’s a powerful reminder that som...

In Episode 119 of Built By The Red Stick, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Bee Tee for a raw conversation about trauma, addiction, survival, and what happens when the things you have lived through permanently change you. Trauma does not always disappear when the moment is over. It can affect how you think, how you react, how you build relationships, and how you see yourself. Fo...

In Episode 118 of Built By The Red Stick, Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Kirk Moncrief for an honest conversation about addiction, relationships, consequences, and the difference between loving someone and losing yourself in the process. Kirk opens up about his experiences and the lessons that came from relationships shaped by unhealthy patterns, difficult choices, and the chaos su...

In Episode 117 of Built By The Red Stick , hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Kevin “Tank” Gambino for an honest conversation about addiction, pressure, consequences, and reaching the point where life becomes too much to handle alone. Tank opens up about the pressure that continued building in his life, the decisions that came with it, and what happened when everything finally re...

Episode 116 is a little different. There is no guest this week—just Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley having an honest conversation about their own lives, their recovery, and the second chances that helped shape the men they are today. Ronnie and Michael reflect on the moments when everything could have gone differently, the people who refused to give up on them, and the responsibility that comes w...

In Episode 115 of Built By The Red Stick, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Tina Bass, CIT, for a powerful conversation about addiction, prison, consequences, faith, and the road to redemption. Before becoming a recovery leader, Tina experienced homelessness, addiction, incarceration, and the possibility of losing nearly everything as a habitual offender. Her life began to chang...

In Episode 114 of Built By The Red Stick, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with two women helping lead the fight against addiction at Second Chances Addiction Recovery Center: Riley McEacharn and Krystine Poindexter, RAC. Riley serves as the Facility Administrator at Second Chances, overseeing operations while supporting the staff and clients throughout their recovery journeys. Her...

In Episode 113 of Built by the Red Stick, Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Mike Boudreaux for an honest conversation about the experience that nearly cost him everything—and the second chance that gave him an opportunity to choose a different path. Mike shares the story behind that life-changing moment, the lessons he carried forward, and why every chance at a better life matters. Th...

Episode 112 of Built By The Red Stick is one of those full-circle conversations. Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Darrin Seal, Men’s Center Director at the Washington Street Hope Center in Marksville and an addiction counselor who knows firsthand what it means to need recovery—and what can happen when you finally give it a chance. Darrin’s life didn’t always look like it does today....

This special episode brings a little podcast crossover to Built By The Red Stick as Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley welcome Andrew and Taylor Gautreau from Louisiana Legends. Louisiana Legends is built around something we can definitely relate to—sitting down with real people and letting them tell the stories you probably aren't going to hear anywhere else. Their show has featured everyone f...

Episode 111 of Built By The Red Stick welcomes Laurent Lobell to the studio for another real conversation about addiction, recovery, and just how much life can change when you finally decide to do something different. Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Laurent to hear his story in his own words. They talk about the chaos of the past, the consequences that come with addiction, and what...

Episode 110 of Built By The Red Stick welcomes Rebecca Turner to the studio for a real conversation about life, recovery, the things we go through, and what happens when we finally start moving forward. Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Rebecca and give her the floor to tell her story in her own words—the good, the bad, the lessons learned, and the experiences that helped shape the pe...

In Episode 109 of Built By The Red Stick, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley welcome Steve Burgess, Operations Manager at The Hope Center in Marksville, Louisiana, for a NEW installment of the Meet Your Sponsor series. Steve has spent years helping ensure that The Hope Center continues its mission of restoring lives through quality addiction treatment and recovery support. Since opening its do...

In Episode 108 of Built By The Red Stick, Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Jarvis Fountaine, a counselor, recovery advocate, and community resource coordinator who has taken his own experiences and turned them into an opportunity to help others. Jarvis doesn't just talk about addiction recovery from the outside looking in. He has publicly shared his own experiences with substanc...

 In Episode 107 of Built By The Red Stick, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Ann Matassa for a deeply personal conversation about domestic violence, survival, and finding the strength to finally break free. Ann opens up about the reality of living in an abusive relationship—the bruises she covered, the excuses she made, and the complicated reasons people sometimes stay in situat...

In Episode 106 of Built By The Red Stick, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Cathy Toliver for an incredibly emotional conversation about the unimaginable pain of losing her grandson. Cathy shares her family's story, the tragedy that changed their lives forever, and what it has been like trying to navigate grief after such a devastating loss. She opens up about the memories...

In Episode 105 of Built By The Red Stick, Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley welcome back the guys from Rehab Bromance—Jed Payne, Trevon Tardy, and Raph Luneau—and things get wild pretty quickly. This episode is packed with stories, nonstop laughs, recovery talk, and the kind of unpredictable conversations that happen when you put five guys with a lot of history, personality, and absolutely no filte...

In this episode of the Addiction Recovery Podcast, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley welcome LaShona Mosby, founder of Families with a Broken Heart Due to Senseless Violence, for one of the most emotional conversations we've had on the show. After losing her son, Corinthian, to gun violence in 2014—a tragedy that also left her two other sons wounded—LaShona made the courageous decision t...

In this episode of the Addiction Recovery Podcast, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley welcome Donna Burks, a mental health and substance abuse professional whose career has been dedicated to helping individuals find healing, stability, and long-term recovery. Donna holds a Master's degree and serves as a PLPC (Provisionally Licensed Professional Counselor) and SAP (Substance Abuse Profess...

In this episode of the Addiction Recovery Podcast , hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley welcome Katie True for an honest conversation about recovery, healing, and the power of finding your true identity after addiction. Katie shares her personal journey through addiction, the challenges she faced along the way, and the moments that ultimately led her toward recovery. She opens up about rebuildi...

In this episode of the Addiction Recovery Podcast, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Rolando Wolfe, a substance abuse counselor, recovery advocate, and leader in the sober living community. Rolando has dedicated his life to helping individuals find freedom from addiction and build a foundation for lasting recovery. Through his work in counseling and sober living, he has witnesse...

In this powerful episode of the Addiction Recovery Podcast, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Jody Plauché, author of Why Gary Why? and son of the late Gary Plauché, whose story became known around the world after he shot and killed the man who had abducted and sexually abused Jody. For decades, the public has focused on the dramatic moment captured on live television. But behin...

In this episode of the Addiction Recovery Podcast, hosts Ronnie LeDuff and Michael Oakley sit down with Trevon Tardy, a recovery advocate whose story is rooted in transformation, accountability, and helping others find freedom from addiction. Through faith, surrender, and a commitment to recovery, Trevon has rebuilt his life and now dedicates himself to supporting others battling addiction. He has...