Rick Stanley, stepbrother of Elvis Presley, visited Edna Hamrick at her home in Gaffney on Thursday. "When I was here to preach 20 years ago, Mrs. Hamrick gave this poor college kid some clothes to wear," Stanley said. "She thought it was so funny that I preached in blue jeans, so she gave me a few pairs. I wanted to come back and say thank you and give her a copy of my book and CD." Stanley will be a guest speaker at the Go Tell Upstate Crusade, May 21 24. For decades, Rick Stanley has only been known for one thing - he's the stepbrother of the late Elvis Presley.

But as a guest speaker at Gaffney High School on Thursday, Stanley was there to teach the students gathered at an afternoon assembly about the dangers of alcohol.

"When I was 16, I quit school to work full-time as a personal assistant to Elvis," Stanley told the more than 1,500 teens in the audience. "I had to face the same addictions and difficulties that Elvis did and for me that meant dealing with alcohol. At that age, I thought there was nothing scarier than being on stage at an Elvis concert. You see, when my brother came out, in about five seconds 200 young women would rush the stage. And then, five seconds later, 200 old women would rush the stage. If you want to talk about being frightened, there's nothing scarier in the world than watching a 300pound woman doing 30 miles an hour down the aisle at an Elvis concert."

Stanley's famous brother influenced his life all through his childhood years.

"When I was in school, my teachers would say those dreaded words to me," he recalled. "They would say 'Mr. Stanley, please step out into the hall,' and I'd go with my heart pounding. And then they'd just ask me what Elvis was really like."

But it wasn't always great to be growing up in the shadow of the king of rock and roll.

"I got so sick of people telling me that the only reason I ever got any attention was because of my brother," Stanley said. "But, I was determined that nobody was gonna just use me. I'd been selling my brother's autograph since I was in first grade, for $5 apiece. And it wasn't even his autograph."

Associating with the rich and famous afforded Stanley more opportunities than the average teen in the 1960s, and they weren't always good.

"I got involved with alcohol," he said. "Because no one ever told me about the dangers. No one ever came to my school and explained how dangerous it was. Young people I'm here today to tell you that alcohol can destroy your life. After my brother died, I became a minister. I have a friend who owns a funeral home, and sometimes he has to call me to come and be there with a family. The hardest thing for me is to try and tell a mom or dad that their child has been killed because of an alcohol-related accident."

Stanley also mentioned to the students that he will be a guest speaker at the Go Tell Upstate Crusade scheduled for May 2124 at W.K. Brumbach Stadium. He will also be speaking at Blacksburg Middle and high schools on May 22 and at Ewing Middle School on May 23.

Stanley's television appearances include Good Morning America, 20/20, E! True

Hollywood Story and five appearances on Larry King Live. People Magazine has interviewed Stanley and run an eight page story on him. He has also authored three books.