Life without alcohol creates
clear skies for this storm-chasing
local man, Tim Purington

When it comes to a way of life, the word “functional” wasn’t quite what Tim Purington of Hammond was aiming for. But it’s how he describes the 20 years when he was struggling with an addiction to alcohol.

“They call that a functional alcoholic, I guess, someone who’s able to still function. Still hold a job and a family. But, you know, the family’s not happy. They are still there. And I am still there physically, but mentally, I’m always thinking of ways I could get away and go out and drink,” Purington says.

His life changed on April 22, 2007, when he woke up sick after blacking out the night before. It was the last episode in an escalating pattern that the husband and father of two young children knew would only get worse. He had watched his father, now also a recovering alcoholic, go through the same scenarios.

“I woke up. That was the bottom. I went to treatment that morning,” he says.

He entered the emergency department at Hudson Hospital & Clinics, which referred him to a medical facility specializing in detox. Back home several days later, Purington began Programs for Change, an outpatient chemical addiction treatment and recovery care program at Hudson Hospital & Clinics. While continuing to work full time, he met with counselors and fellow patients every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. He says the program saved his life.

“In my mind, without Programs for Change…,” Purington says, overcome by emotion. “They were the ones to get me where I am right now.”

He’s been sober for the past three years and is tremendously grateful. The greatest benefit of sobriety is his relationship with his family. Purington is active in his kids’ lives and looks forward to coaching his son’s softball team this summer. “Before,” he says of earlier days. “I just couldn’t give the time.”

Peter Van Dusartz, Programs for Change manager, said Purington represents many people with chemical addictions. He worked full time, remained married, was active in the community and had no legal problems.

For Purington, the severity of his problem may have been a secret, but everyone knew he was the life of the party. Purington says weekly softball games, and the drinking involved with them, took an unnatural priority. So did weekends at the lake, where he spent hundreds of dollars on alcohol. Whether it was a golf game or a convention, Purington was the guy handing the drinks and keeping the party going, he says.

Now, he finds he can be just as social without a beer in his hand. He continues to co-host tailgating parties before Vikings games in a box truck he owns with a group of friends. The custom-painted truck includes a flat-screen TV, fridge, fireplace, satellite and full electricity.

“I can still be out there and hang out with them and socialize and do everything they are – except drink,” Purington says. “I really don’t think about it anymore.”

And he continues to get an adrenaline rush without the aid of alcohol. As a national storm chaser, he tracks and pursues severe weather, as far south as Texas. The Discovery Channel, the Weather Channel, the National Weather Service and other major outlets use his video footage of the storms.

Van Dusartz says Purington excelled in the Programs for Change program and continued involvement with peer groups beyond his required sessions. “Tim’s the first guy I call when someone needs extra support,” Van Dusartz said.

In fact, Purington is taking classes to become an addictions counselor himself.

“You don’t have to be on your deathbed or facing a six-year sentence,” Purington says of entering chemical addictions treatment. “It’s just all about changing who you want to be.”