BILLERICA - Former Boston Bruin Lyndon Byers is wearing a different kind of uniform these days, but is using his time in red prison garb to appeal to teens on the life dangers of drinking and drugs.
Not one player on the Waltham High School boys hockey team asked for Byers' autograph yesterday. They no longer saw him as a revered celebrity; he was simply inmate 104237 at the Billerica House of Corrections with a few words of strong advice.
"I'm the guy who fought all the time," Byers said. "I was a partier and I got away with it for the longest time, but this is where it got me. I am not a Boston Bruin anymore. That's over. I'm a loser, an inmate. You're one decision away from being me."
The former right winger, known for his physical style of play, was sentenced to 60 days at Billerica last December for driving with a revoked license for the second time after a 1998 drunk driving offense.
Byers' words were a confirmation for what the Waltham hockey team had already witnessed for themselves earlier in the day during their visit to the prison. They had heard the iron bars slam behind them, smelled the dank staleness of the 6-foot-by-9-foot cells and walked through the crowds of jeering inmates.
It was not a pleasure tour through the wearing halls of the House of Corrections. It was a warning and a scare tactic aimed at keeping these state champions on track.
"It was kind of scary. I can't imagine living there for even a day," Waltham high school senior Chris Graceffa said after the tour.
With a long NHL career starting at the age of 19, Byers said he never once thought his drinking would lead to trouble - resulting in not only landing him in jail for two months but also potentially ruining his new career as a radio personality on 107.3 WAAF. Byers said he was suspended without pay from the station after his conviction and is unsure whether he will be hired back.
"This is awful, you do not want to be here," Byers said to students. "If you did what I did, you will miss a lot. I no longer make life decisions - I get told what to eat, when to shower and given clothes to wear. It's humiliating. It's a wake-up call to change my life."
BILLERICA - Former Boston Bruin Lyndon Byers is wearing a different kind of uniform these days, but is using his time in red prison garb to appeal to teens on the life dangers of drinking and drugs.
Not one player on the Waltham High School boys hockey team asked for Byers' autograph yesterday. They no longer saw him as a revered celebrity; he was simply inmate 104237 at the Billerica House of Corrections with a few words of strong advice.
"I'm the guy who fought all the time," Byers said. "I was a partier and I got away with it for the longest time, but this is where it got me. I am not a Boston Bruin anymore. That's over. I'm a loser, an inmate. You're one decision away from being me."
The former right winger, known for his physical style of play, was sentenced to 60 days at Billerica last December for driving with a revoked license for the second time after a 1998 drunk driving offense.
Byers' words were a confirmation for what the Waltham hockey team had already witnessed for themselves earlier in the day during their visit to the prison. They had heard the iron bars slam behind them, smelled the dank staleness of the 6-foot-by-9-foot cells and walked through the crowds of jeering inmates.
It was not a pleasure tour through the wearing halls of the House of Corrections. It was a warning and a scare tactic aimed at keeping these state champions on track.
"It was kind of scary. I can't imagine living there for even a day," Waltham high school senior Chris Graceffa said after the tour.
With a long NHL career starting at the age of 19, Byers said he never once thought his drinking would lead to trouble - resulting in not only landing him in jail for two months but also potentially ruining his new career as a radio personality on 107.3 WAAF. Byers said he was suspended without pay from the station after his conviction and is unsure whether he will be hired back.
"This is awful, you do not want to be here," Byers said to students. "If you did what I did, you will miss a lot. I no longer make life decisions - I get told what to eat, when to shower and given clothes to wear. It's humiliating. It's a wake-up call to change my life."
Byers and cell roommate Robert Souza, a recovering heroin addict serving his third sentence at Billerica for a period of 18 months, co-hosted the talk as one of a series of outreach initiatives through the house of corrections. Middlesex County Sheriff James DiPaola said the program is based on being brutally honest with teens.
"Life is all about choices. People are going to put temptation in front of you and your choices will determine where you are in five and 10 years," said DiPaola. "If you fall down now, you will be left behind. I think the biggest misconception is that only bad guys go to jail. The majority of people are good guys who made a bad decision."
The Billerica House of Corrections is a medium security jail housing about 1,000 inmates. The jail also has a minimum security component comprised of a work release and community work program.
