Lewis County Person of the Week

Randall Christy, 42

By Amanda Spears

Staff Reporter

When I reached out to Randall Christy to tell him he was chosen for person of the week, his words were, "What in the world and well ok, I will be home on lunch at 11 a.m. if you want to come then. Well I have not been in the paper in a long time and it was not good then."

Q.) Where did you grow up?

A.) Good ole Hohenwald, Tennessee.

Q.) What is one of your fondest childhood memories?

A.) I don't have just one but I loved playing football, hunting and fishing. That's all I did pretty much as a kid.

Q.) What did you want to be as a kid? What did you actually become?

A.) Well I wanted to play pro football but my ankles kept that dream from happening...

And well what I became was a high school dropout and ended up strung out on drugs. But I found the light at the end of that long dark tunnel and I got clean on April, 3 2011, same day my grandson Jase was born. I don't miss that life at all. I also regained custody of my kids, got a job at the sawmill working for Paul Tanner and worked there 11 years. And now I am the county litter patrol and dog catcher.

Q.) Who was/is your biggest role model?

A.) Ronald Sharp. I called him one day and he said he was on his way to rehab, he told me I know there is a better life than this and I'm gonna find it. Then when I went to rehab, he came to see me every week. He kept me going.

Q.) What are some of your favorite hobbies/how do you like to spend your free time?

A.) If I'm not working, you can find me taking my grandson hunting, at the river fishing or camping with my family. We like to be outside.

Q.) If you could go anywhere, in or out of the states, where would it be? Why?

A.) I would go somewhere like Alaska or Colorado for one of those big game hunts. That's something I've wanted to do for a while - one of those big game hunts and I might get me a big, big buck.

Q.) What is one of your favorite songs?

A.) Chris Janson, Hawaii on Me!

Q.) What is one of your favorite things about living in Hohenwald?

A.) The community. Everybody knows everybody. It's just the simple life, but not as simple as it used to be. We can't even leave our doors unlocked anymore.

Q.) What skill would you like to master? Why?

A.) I would love to learn how to get up in front of people and talk. I know I can do it, I just don't know what to say, and well, I want to help people. I want to be able to talk to them so I can help them, especially our young kids, to really counsel them with anything really. But especially the ones that are lost on that same road I went down - teach them how to live clean and sober.

Q.) Is there any life advice you could give our readers?

A.) To all those out there in active addiction, you don't have to live that life. If I can do it anyone can do it.

Q.) Is there anything you would like to add that my questions may not have touched on?

A.) My life would not be what it is today with out my kids Naysha, Cayden, stepkids Daniel and Eric, my grandkids Asher, Sammy and Jace and my backbone Dana since 02/14/14. And I can't leave out my sister and my parents, Jimmy and Dorothy Christy. Also I would like for everyone to please pray for my mother as she has some health issues.

As we was ending the interview Christy said one more thing "I would like to add, like my man Drew Carey says, Get your pets spayed and neutered."