Stories about our sober living home and the trials and tribulations, thoughts, hopes and dreams of r Many of us have made mistakes over the years.
Our sober living home is a place for those who want - need - a fresh start. Often times related to drug and/or alcohol abuse, sometimes just on our own. But for a variety of reasons, we find ourselves down and out, with no place to go, and no means to grow again into the responsible person we know we could be. A variety of good homes, often called Sober Living Houses, exist to give aid to any of u
s in such circumstances. Some are large and well known, such as the Oxford House network. Others are small and independent, such as ours and dozens of others. Each has the same goal, all are working towards the same dream, that of being able to offer guests an opportunity to recover in a safe environment and thus to gain their independence. To this end, we renovated a small but functional two bedroom home that has a washer and dryer on site, a common kitchen, bathroom and living room, internet provided, garbage service provided, all utilities provided, and such. Four guests can be accommodated, two per bedroom. The rules are much the same for many Sober Living Houses, such as no alcohol, no drugs and no disturbances. Disturbances are such things as fighting, yelling or anything that involves drawing the attention of the neighbors or the police. Such violations would mean having to leave at once. Other rules exist, but do not involve instant revocation of guest privileges unless they are persisted in. Going to AA/NA meetings weekly. Attending the weekly home meetings. Household chores. Keeping personal areas clean. No smoking in doors. When applying, they are all gone over. The point in all of them is to aid one in maintaining sobriety and growing to independence in a safe and distraction free environment. Staff exists to aid in overseeing the general upkeep of the home, to give advice on such disputes or concerns as may arise or to educate as to budgeting, applying for jobs, resume building, plans for future independence, and such. Religious instruction is also available, and rides to church, but conversion is not a requirement to be aided. Funding for this comes from donors, sponsors and those being helped. The $50 per week fee covers everything, and in various circumstances can often be aided in. There are no "deposits". No background checks. No credit checks. While there is no set in stone time limit on how long one can make use of this service, the goal is for the guest to be able to grow and save to have their own place one day. If this sounds like something that would be of aid to you, or if you'd like to help us aid others, please contact us at 217-720-2568. Rides to here are available if you live in the Springfield, Illinois area. You may learn more of what is offered, how to be a part of our "30 giving 20" program or how to put in an application at that time, and have an answer as to availability at once.
