This coming week, students throughout Carroll County will hear from a former professional BMX athlete and Olympic-level coach about the dangers of substance abuse thanks to funding from the Carroll County Opioid Settlement Committee. In his youth, Tony Hoffman was on the fast track to becoming one of the best BMX racers the world had ever seen. He had been featured on the cover of BMXer Magazine and boasted sponsorships from major players in the sport, all while still in high school. However, his internal struggles with anxiety and depression led him to misuse OxyContin, which took him down a different path of addiction, crime, and homelessness. He landed in a California prison following a drug-related home invasion robbery. Following his parole in 2008, Hoffman rededicated himself to BMX and to help others break free from addiction, or better yet, never start at all. Carroll County Public Health Director Maggie Pauley says she and the other committee members are thrilled to bring a speaker of Hoffman’s caliber to local students.
Hoffman returned to the BMX pro circuit, eventually placing second at the 2016 Masters World Championships. He went on to coach Brooke Crain to a fourth-place finish at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Carroll County is projected to receive more than $400,000 over the next decade from opioid manufacturers, distributors, and other pharmaceutical companies for their involvement in the national opioid crisis. Pauley says the committee has already allocated over $200,000 for opioid-related treatment and prevention, such as the “Hidden in Plain Sight” trailer from the Manning Recovery Center and medical equipment for Carroll County’s Ambulance Service.
Hoffman is scheduled to speak to Glidden-Ralston students on Wednesday. He’ll be with Carroll and IKM-Manning students on Thursday, and Kuemper Catholic and Coon Rapids-Bayard students on Friday.
