A CHANCE TO CHANGE HIS LIFE 18 months in Drug Court helps former addict transform his life By MISTY SCHWAB misty.schwab@apgsomn.com
E Steven Keller is pictured with his wife, Kali, and their children, from left: Lincoln, Rylynn and Arabella. (Photo courtesy of Steven Keller)
“[Drug Court] helped me have an opportunity to truly change my life and turn it around. It’s super, super awesome to be graduating and keep moving forward. I’m super grateful for Drug Court, but I’m ready to move on.” - Steven Keller
Page 36 | Profiles 2021
ighteen months ago, Owatonna resident Steven Keller would have laughed if someone told him what his life would look like in February 2021. At 29, he’s a husband, a father, and an associate pastor. And as of Feb. 24, he’s an official graduate of the Steele Waseca Drug Court. None of this would have seemed possible to Keller 18 months ago. At that point, he couldn’t imagine taking care of a child when he could barely take care of himself, he didn’t believe in God, and all he thought about was drugs. “[Drug Court] helped me have an opportunity to truly change my life and turn it around,” Keller said. “It’s super, super awesome to be graduating and keep moving forward. I’m super grateful for Drug Court, but I’m ready to move on.” During Keller’s virtual commencement, which marked 638 days of sobriety for him, Steele County Attorney Daniel McIntosh said completing the Drug Court program in 18 months is “the exception and not the rule.” Judge Joseph Bueltel said Keller’s motivation was evi-
