STAR Community Justice Center has truly lived up to its name by serving as a shining example for the rest of Ohio.

The Franklin Furnace-based community correctional facility was recently honored by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections as a recipient of the Clifford Skeen Award, an honor bestowed annually for excellence in its field.

The STAR Center has played an integral role in the lives of thousands of men and women battling substance abuse and in need of help find the path toward a positive life.

The center deserves all the recognition it has earned for this.

At a time when Ohio’s prison system is overflowing and drug abuse seems to be near epidemic proportions, STAR has provided the structure and guidance for those truly wanting to turn their lives around.

Does everyone who participates in the program succeed? Of course not. It ultimately comes down to an individual’s willingness to look in the mirror and ask his or herself some tough questions about how they ended up where they are and where they want to go.

Regardless of all the awards in the world, the STAR Community Justice Center cannot do it for individuals battling their demons. But it can give them tools and support so that they know how to do it and they know that they are not alone.