Former meth addict finally 'happy in (her) own skin'

FAIRVIEW, Sanpete County — Getting down and dirty with the guys during a second-place finish at her first demolition derby is a fitting metaphor for Lindsay Cheney's race through early adulthood: a crash-and-smash, stop-and-start trip toward triumph at the finish line.

Her ready smile, clear eyes and cogent conversation belie this 33-year-old single mother's hardscrabble struggle to beat addiction and finally redeem herself in the eyes of family and townsfolk.

In what many would describe as the ultimate turnaround, Cheney, a former meth addict, plans to graduate in August from the University of Utah with a certificate as a licensed substance-abuse counselor. She commutes nearly 200 miles round-trip each week, promising her 5- and 7-year-old children a trip to Disneyland if they can just hang in with her through graduation.

If that isn't enough to underscore her determination, she has funded her education with demo derby prize money and by selling scrap metal from beat-up cars and old appliances.

She literally turned trash into tuition, much like she steered the tragedy of what could have been a young life wasted into the destiny that colleagues say will make her a superb role model for people rehabilitating their lives.

As a child sheltered by life in small-town central Utah, "I had no idea where I was going or what I would be doing in the future. When I was little, all I cared about was horses, farming and rodeo."

The daughter of the town's police chief and a high school special education teacher, Cheney's life changed when she dabbled in drugs during junior high school. At 17, she found her "drug of choice," then married and moved to Cedar City, where she could get stoned regularly without worrying about her family's reputation.

"I ruined my marriage, and everything just fell apart," she recalled over a grilled cheese sandwich. Her steady gaze and matter-of-fact demeanor reflect a hard-won self-assurance, fostered by "an amazing support system of family and friends."

By the time she hit her early 20s, she was serving jail time on theft and drug charges, destined to become another meth statistic. Desperate to salvage any hope for the future and, in spite of the embarrassment she had caused family in a town where people know each other's business, she turned to her father. "I told him I was in trouble and needed help."

He came up with some cash and traded some beef with a rehab center in Salt Lake County so Cheney could get sober. The family's LDS bishop chipped in, and she spent five months re-evaluating her life.