CLINTON J RANDALL

My name is Clinton J Randall and my story is unlike any other…from drug addiction to prison and several life-threatening events, I have been through hell and back! Without God in my life, I would not have been able to come out the other side and share my testimony.

I was born in 1973 to a loving Christian family…so why did I take a dark path at a young age? Well, you can read more about my journey as you read further down the page.

My website was created to give others hope from battling addiction, physical issues or whatever struggle they may have. I use what I have been through in order to help others and show what God has done for me…even at the darkest times in my life.

At the same time that I lost my grandpa, my mother remarried and I had to move with her to Columbus. Though I did live with my mom in Miami, FL for a short time when I was young, the move to Columbus was a culture shock to me after living in the small town of Greenville for most of my life.

I began my freshman year continuing to participate in sports…football, basketball and baseball. I always loved to play almost any sport growing up, but this did not last long after I started hanging out with the wrong crowd.

It wasn’t long until I began using drugs and alcohol…and gave up on playing sports altogether. Drugs and the crowd of people I was surrounded by led me to experiment with Satanism and get involved in street gang activity.

I left Columbus in my junior year of high school. I returned to Greenville to live with my grandma, who lived alone in my childhood home. I resumed schooling, but my focus by this time was on selling drugs and partying with my friends. I dropped out of school with only a couple months to go of my senior year.

I surrounded myself with other drug users and even let some move into the basement of my grandmother’s home. The partying was a daily thing and it really did not matter what kind of drug…we did it all.

You would think after nearly losing my life to the explosion, I would have turned my back on drugs and alcohol, but that was not the case. Appearing on national television and in local media interviews, I was on the local police department’s radar. I was all along using and dealing drugs.

Suffering burns all over my body and having an amputated left foot was hard to deal with for a young man. I found myself using even more drugs than before and dealing marijuana and LSD (acid). Most anyone in the community who used drugs came to me and soon I became “Public Enemy #1” in the eyes of the police.

It wasn’t long before my drug-dealing days would come to an end. The police department sent a confidential informant to try and record me selling LSD…it worked. I was later convicted on seven felony counts and sentenced to serve 3-15 years in prison. After several failed appeals, it was time for me to turn myself in on April 4, 1994 and begin to serve my time.

To say I was a nervous wreck would be an understatement. This was not just my first time in prison, but I had never been behind bars before. I found myself locked up with every type of criminal you can think of. Not knowing how long I would have to spend behind bars was the worst part. I wanted to do everything I could to get released the first time I would have my parole hearing.

Prison is a different world that forces you to adapt to. Having physical scars and amputations made things that much more difficult to adjust to. I refused to be in a medical dorm, so I was in general population for the entire three years I spent in the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.

Since I did not graduate high school, I used my time to obtain my GED and take computer courses to help better myself and find my career path once I got released from prison.

After my divorce, I found myself spiraling back down the rabbit hole of drugs and alcohol. I started going to NA groups to try and get myself back on track. One of the organizers of a group I regularly attended asked if I would be willing to be part of a local men’s Christian retreat…I agreed. This was the best decision I ever made in my life!

Though I had no idea what to expect, I soon learned what an Emmaus Walk was all about. My first Walk was somewhat intimidating at first, but by the end of the 72-hour retreat, I felt changed inside. God worked on me and broke me free of the chains that bound me for so many years.

Despite all of the sins I have done in the past, I learned and felt that God’s grace and forgiveness were always there…I just needed to seek Him and ask His forgiveness.

On the final night of the Walk, I broke down and cried harder than ever before. I felt inside the grace and forgiveness God was waiting for me to accept. I learned no matter what guilt I had in my heart, He would take it all away and refresh my soul.

After my first Emmaus Walk, I was hungry to be part of it again. Over the next couple of years, I was part of four more walks, where I was able to give my testimony to others. It was an amazing and life-changing time in my life. I made good friends and was able to hold my head high because I knew I was forgiven for my dark past and Jesus loved me!

On April 19, 2013 I was hard at work all morning, covering several local vehicle crashes with injuries. I felt a bit overwhelmed and had some tightness in my chest, but being the workaholic I was…I pushed on.

I was alerted of a third crash of the day, so I set out to the scene to get photos and information like always. I vaguely remember even leaving the news office and it wasn’t long after I suffered a heart condition which caused me to run a stop sign in the country. My vehicle entered the path of an oncoming large truck. The driver of the truck was unable to avoid the collision and T-boned the passenger side of my vehicle at about 60 mph.

I do not remember anything about the crash, but once first responders were on the scene, I was told that I was “taken death breaths”. They immediately requested air transport to get me to the trauma center at an area hospital. There was not much hope for survival, according to Sheriff Deputies, firefighters and EMTs. With the help of all the first responders, flight nurses and God, I once again beat the odds and woke up two days later.

My body suffered several skull fractures, a crushed right clavicle bone and a fractured right pelvic bone. Once the surgeons and specialists repaired me as much as they could, I was sent to in-patient physical therapy, in hopes of getting me back up on my feet.

I found myself humbled by all the community support I received during my rehabilitation. I had many visitors and even got help to replace my broken camera from a charity car wash organized by some friends.

My passion for reporting the news drove me to always work as hard as I could to be the best at what I did, but until now I never took the time to notice the positive impact my reporting had on my community.

It took a few months, but I finally was able to get back to doing what I loved the most. This time I knew I needed to take better care of my health to avoid another incident like this.

Though I worked hard to eat better and exercise more, the fire in 1992 damaged my heart and would need to do all I could to avoid heart failure and suffer another life-threatening episode.

I am always willing to share my story and give a presentation. Click the button below to contact me to discuss a date, time and place where you would like me to share my testimony. Normally I do not charge to do this unless there is long travel and lodging necessary. May God bless you and keep you safe!