When Currie Haynes says he’s in a “good place,” he is not necessarily referring to the new location of his business — Currie’s Barber Shop and Salon — which opens this week on Gardner Boulevard in Columbus in a larger, renovated building that will better accommodate his growing clientele.
It may have taken him only a few months to relocate his business, but arriving in a “good place” is a journey that began 30 years ago when Haynes began a 20-year spiral into addiction.
“I started using in my late teens — from drinking to powder cocaine to crack — off and on until I was about 39,” said Haynes, now 49.
Haynes’ addiction finally cratered in 2011, when the Jackson native was arrested twice in the span of a week: a paraphernalia charge in Hinds County and paraphernalia, possession and DUI charges in Rankin County.
By then, Haynes had lost everything.
“I had run out of resources — no job, no car, no credit, no wife, no kids, no house. No family, either,” Haynes recalled. “By that time they had said, ‘No more. We’re through.’”
Haynes caught a break, though. He was able to go through a diversion program that placed him on a five-year probation, at the end of which his record would be cleared.
As part of the agreement, Haynes went to rehab in Meridian, but the dark cloud of addiction still hung over him.
“I had no place to go,” he said. “Fortunately, the counselors there found an open spot at The Last House on the Block in Columbus. I’d never been to Columbus, but at least I had a place to go and wouldn’t be homeless. That’s the way I looked at it.”
Last House on the Block is a faith-based residential recovery facility for men like Haynes, whose addiction has become unsustainable. The program focuses heavily on Christian instruction. Residents are required to regularly attend church services and Bible study.
That part wasn’t of much interest to Haynes when he arrived.
“All I thought was that Last House on the Block had a bed available,” he said. “I thought that may work. I had no intention of getting sober, but it provided a space for me where I had time to think while I was sober.”
It was at Last House on the Block that Haynes found two things he wasn’t looking for: faith and a mate.
“That’s where I found God,” he said. “God saved my life. Twelve Steps saved my life.”
Haynes was required to attend Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings. At his first AA meeting, Haynes met a Columbus woman named Nicole.
While studies show that addicted couples find it difficult to stay sober together, Currie and Nicole have defied the odds for almost 10 years now.
“We just refused to be away from each other,” Haynes said. “We’ve both had relapses over the years, but we keep turning it over to God. We’re sober today.”
After leaving Last House on the Block, Haynes returned to the only thing he hadn’t lost during his addiction.
“I had been a barber before and being a barber gave me the freedom to work for myself,” Haynes said. “I didn’t have to be concerned about not being qualified because of my background. For anyone out there who is in the position I was, I’d tell them to get a skill, get an education. It opens up things for you when you have that.”
Haynes’ business has steadily grown over the past decade. His new location has three barber chairs and he’s currently looking to hire a cosmetologist. Nicole works as the shop’s business manager.
Haynes has Asperger syndrome, which is a type of autism. Even that has proven to open up new avenues.
“A lot of parents bring their autistic children to me because other shops won’t cut their hair,” Haynes said. “It’s hard for autistic children to be still and a lot of barbers just won’t do it. But I know what they’re going through. I think that helps.”
Yes, Haynes is in a good place, any way you look at it.
“Gosh, so much has happened,” he says. “Ten years ago, I gave my life to Christ and said, ‘Do whatever you want.’ There have been a few relapses, but I went from being homeless to having a wife and two kids (Nicole has two children from a previous relationship). I own a house, a business, a couple of cars and have friends and family I didn’t have back then. I’m living a life today that I don’t feel like I deserve.”
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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