Interview with Shannondore Sims, July 1, 2022

Partial Transcript: "Start with your birthdate and go from there."

Segment Synopsis: Sims talks about his childhood, his love for people and his fondest memories with family and friends. He explains what his father and mother were like as parents and provides their names.

Keywords: 3D Champs; AYO Lions; Compassion; Cub Scouts; Disciplinarian; Little League Football; Loving; Murray Wayne Sims; Patricia Ann Sims; Respectful Child; The Golden Rule; Two Parent Household

Partial Transcript: "...it came a point when those [fond] memories were suffocated by an experience I had at around, about 12 years old."

Segment Synopsis: Sims shares about witnessing his parents smoking cocaine and explains how seeing that changed his view of life. He says that this was what drew him away from his home and family.

Keywords: Addicted Parents; Crack Cocaine; Drug Addiction; Family Struggles; Succumb; Working Class Neighborhood

Partial Transcript: "In Athens during that time, marijuana was a big thing in the streets..."

Segment Synopsis: Sims explains how he gravitated towards illegal activity and different types of substance abuse as a teenager. He also explains how he attempted to project a sense of normalcy and stability at school even with all the instability in his life.

Keywords: "Crackhead"; "The Streets" of Athens Clarke County; Adolescent Pregnancy; Alcohol; Alcohol Addiction; Charade; Destroyed Faith; Drug Addiction; Drug Dealing; Dual Life; Isolating; Isolation; MD 20/20; Mad Dog 20/20; Malt Liquors; Marijuana; Marijuana Addiction; Sense of Normalcy; Teen Pregnancy; Weed

Partial Transcript: "During my senior year of high school... I came to a crossroads."

Segment Synopsis: Sims discusses the series of events that made him so desperate for money that he engaged in illegal activities. He shares how being around unscrupulous people change his mindset and led him to concede his values.

Keywords: Accessory to Felony Murder; Armed Robbery; Assimilation; Association; Child Support; Criminal Activity; Desperation; Drug Dealing; Drug Use; Fraternity; Poultry Processing Plant; Robbery; Unemployment; Validation

Partial Transcript: "One of the hardest things during that time... was [his] experience with the District Attorney and [his] attorney."

Segment Synopsis: Sims talks about his experience with the court system and the attorneys that withheld information from him to convince him to plea guilty. He was made aware of this while incarcerated and shares how this discovery impacted his time in prison.

Keywords: Attorney; DA Rick Dixon; Defense Attorney; Determination; District Attorney; Guilty Plea; Incarceration; Jimmie Baggett; Life Sentence plus 15 Years; Parole; Plea Bargain; Plea Negotiations; Rule Following

Partial Transcript: "I started pouring myself into the other guys around me."

Segment Synopsis: Sims describes how he supported the men around him while in prison, shares how he became known for counseling, and explains how this process lightened his own burdens.

Keywords: African-American Muslim; Broken Homes; Counselor; Father-less Home; GEDs; Incarceration; Telfair State Prison; Therapy; Warden

Partial Transcript: "By this time I had started a couple of mentor groups in prison."

Segment Synopsis: Sims explains a situation a mentee of his was involved in a dispute between sets of the Blood Gang in greater metropolitan Atlanta, GA. He shares about how the mentee was a set leader but sought a different lifestyle with Sims' help.

Keywords: Blood Gang; Conflict; Gang Sets; Inmate Disputes; Inmate Fight; Mentoring; Mentorship; Residential Substance Abuse Treatment (RSAT); Savannah, GA

Partial Transcript: "The warden sent for me to get off lockdown."

Segment Synopsis: Sims talks about the process of securing parole. He explains how three different wardens recognized his character and recommended his release.

Keywords: Parole Board; Power Structure; Prison Warden; Transition Center; Work-Release; Wrightsville, GA

Partial Transcript: "I returned home. Came back to Athens, initially I wanted to stay up around Buford where I was in the transitional center..."

Segment Synopsis: Sims shares how his reputation preceded him and how, and to what extent, he got involved with the Athens police force's community relations programs.

Keywords: ACCPD; Athens Clarke County Police Department; GALIC; Georgia Association of Law Enforcement Chaplains; Mayor Denson's Youth Gangs Task Force; Mayor Nancy Denson; Minor Community; Omar Sims; Police Chief Scott Freeman; Police-Community Relations

Partial Transcript: "I also began to work in recovery."

Segment Synopsis: Sims discusses the two centers he founded and co-founded that were dedicated to aiding those in need so that they can experience recovery. He explains how they help with financial assistance and stabilization as well as lack of access to already present recovery resources.

Keywords: 501c3 Non-Profit; Access; Alcoholism; Certified Addiction Recovery Empowerment Specialists (CARES); Certified Science of Addiction Recovery Trainer; Comer, GA; Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities; Disease vs. Moral Failure; Homelessness; Mental Illness; Modern Pathways to Recovery; People Living in Recovery; Substance Abuse; Substance Use Disorder

Partial Transcript: "Doing motivational speaking across the state, now that COVID has kind of loosen its reigns up...."

Segment Synopsis: Sims talks about going to many different places to do motivational speaking and explains why this is important to him.

Keywords: Adversity; Empath; Encouragement; Hope; Legacy; Overcome

Partial Transcript: "You talked about your wife, how did you meet in prison."

Segment Synopsis: Sims talks about his first wife, sharing how they met while he was in prison, how their relationship developed, and how their relationship was weakened by lack of communication and insecurities.

Keywords: Affair; Betrayal; Communication; Disconnection; Infidelity; Marriage

Partial Transcript: " it got to a point where she laid her hand on me."

Segment Synopsis: Sims explains the situation of his divorce from his first wife. He shares about another woman who he grew close to during the same time period and explains their growth and current relationship.

Keywords: Assault; Divorce; Elberton, GA; Infidelity; Insecurity; Mother to Mother Recovery Center for Women; Motivational Speaking; Recovery; Tlayra Jordan

Partial Transcript: "If you were looking in the mirror...what advice would you give him?"

Segment Synopsis: Sims explains the advice he would share with himself at 12 years old and emphasizes the need to embrace all that comes his way.

Keywords: Destiny; Happiness; Hardships; Hurt; Joy; Pain