JD Vance honors his mother at White House for reaching 10 years sobriety

"I remember when I gave my (Republican National Committee) convention speech, which was the craziest thing, and I even said during the speech that we would have your 10-year medallion ceremony at the White House," Vance said in the White House's Roosevelt Room, according to the Washington Examiner. 

"Well, here we are," Vance said. "And you made it, and we made it. And most importantly, you're celebrating a very, very big milestone. And I'm just very proud of you." 

At the Republican National Convention in July, Vance said that Aikins would hit 10 years of sobriety in January and promised to bring her to the White House "if President Trump is okay with it." Vance presented Aikins with a medallion on Monday to celebrate the major milestone. 

According to Vance's office, Aikins' advice to those struggling with substance abuse issues is "to reach out, to try to get help, and that recovery is hard, but it's so worth it."

Aikins, who also attended the inauguration ceremony for Vance and President Donald Trump in January, is a nurse at an addiction recovery center in Ohio. "Hillbilly Elegy" details how Aikins first obtained access to prescription medications. 

As a result of Aikins' struggle with addiction, Vance eventually was raised by both his grandparents. 

Vance previously told Fox News in an interview in July 2024 that had his mother had access to drugs coming through the Mexican border, he doesn't believe she would have survived. 

"If the poison that is coming across the border now had been coming across 20 years ago, I don't think that my mom would be here," Vance told Fox News' Jesse Watters. 

Those who joined Vance at the White House on Monday include his wife, Usha Vance, as well as the couple's three children, according to the Examiner.