It's rare when the president of the United States personally invites you to participate in a national symposium.

But there stood Monty Burks, Middle Tennessee State University alumnus with criminal justice bachelor’s and master’s degrees, at the podium alongside President Donald Trump at the Rx Drug Abuse and Heroin Summit Wednesday (April 24) in Atlanta. 

Burks (Classes of 2006 and ’08) is director of Faith-Based Initiatives/Division of Substance Abuse at the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.

“I was invited because of my work with the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services and my personal story of redemption,” Burks said Tuesday (April 30) after being the keynote speaker for the Indiana Minority Health Conference in Indianapolis.

The president, who attended the Atlanta summit with wife Melania Trump, introduced Burks. The remarks aired on C-SPAN and are available online at https://tinyurl.com/y3mne2vz. 

“Nineteen years ago, Monty turned his life around when two women of prayer (Burks’ mother, Patricia Burks-Jelks, an MTSU alumna (Class of 1983), and close family friend Robbie Snapp with MTSU financial aid) from his hometown church helped him to get on a path to recovery,” Trump said.

The past the president referred to included Burks’ father’s passing in 1997 and the son living a “party lifestyle” that included addiction and three years of personal and financial problems.

Burks’ history also includes being guided by MTSU Criminal Justice Administration professor and Chair Lance Selva, who has known Burks for about 30 years. Selva mentored the Winchester, Tennessee, native after he wound up at MTSU with a new lease on life. Burks spent time after criminal justice intervention “and made a success of himself after he came out of drug time,” said Selva, who talked him into re-enrolling after going through longterm treatment.

In “awe, honored and humbled” by the opportunity to be with the Trumps last week, Burks told the attentive audience that “the opposite of addiction is relationship. That simple equation is what helped me find my freedom.  Criminal justice intervention led me to treatment, which led me to recover, which put me on this podium.”

Burks said he has been “blessed to serve” under Tennessee Commissioner (Marie) Williams and (former) Commissioner (Doug) Varney. “They took a chance on a broken and bruised person who had been touched by the system, but they knew that I had a purpose, and my purpose was to use the pain that I’d went through to help other people not have to go through the same thing that I’d went through.”

“You see, recovery is real. We do recover,” Burks added, drawing applause from those attending. “To me, the paradigm shifts with the faith community. Our governor, Bill Lee, supports the faith-based community being the catalyst to change, to control the narrative, to explain how people and recovery can come back and be fruitful and change the paradigm themselves, in their own communities.”

Burks said employers trust the faith community, adding “we go back to work not just for a job but for a career, so we can go back and lead as peers so those who were behind us crying in the wilderness will have a second chance to stand before a podium like this and tell you that, yes, recovery is real. We do recover.”

Sporting his customary bow tie, Burks thanked U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Director Alex Azar and two others for spreading the word and the message about faith-based recovery and treatment across the states.

“Today,” he said, “this is my pulpit and I have to say this: Someone in a program hears me right now and says, ‘I can, because you did. I can because he did.’ That’s right. Yes, you can. Look in the mirror. There is your miracle.”

In closing, he thanked Trump “for allowing me this space to stand beside you. I want to thank God for you and the first lady, and your support of the recovery community.” His remarks drew a standing ovation.

“The experience and opportunity were amazing and humbling,” Burks said before leaving Indianapolis and returning to Nashville Tuesday afternoon. “Most people work an entire career and never get to stand beside a sitting United States president. It was like my whole life and career led me to that one moment — and MTSU prepared me for that day. 

Burks has spoken in Selva’s classes and also the distinguished speaker series in the spring. “And Monty’s a tough guy. He fought in mixed martial arts in Murphy Center — and he won,” Selva said.