By Cindy Mullet
Ranger-Review Staff Writer
Support from the Community GATE board and encouragement from WATCh East have given organizers of a sober living home a real boost, but more hands and a lot of work are still needed before the home can open its doors.
DREAMS House is located on the second floor of the Prairie Development Center in an area that had initially been designed as a dorm for students of a proposed DCC/Farm-to-Table culinary arts program. It is currently used as a hostel for people needing short term housing.
According to DREAMS (Developing, Recovery, Environment and Mentoring Self-Awareness) House organizer Debi Delamater, in a Nov 7 meeting, the Community GATE board committed to let the sober living home use four of the eight rooms initially and to add others as needed.
The long-term plan is to discontinue the hostel and use the facility strictly for the sober living program, she said, adding that while the hostel charges $40 in advance for a three day stay and that has to be renewed every three days, the sober living program would be set up on a monthly rate basis with no limit on how long a resident could stay.
“We want them to stay until they are ready to leave,” she said.
“As long as they are committed to sobriety, we are committed to helping them,” organizer Gina Whittle added.
Organizers are in the process of establishing house rules, but certain expectations have already been defined. A pamphlet describing the program notes that residents will volunteer their time in the community, attend a minimum of three weekly 12-step meetings, attend weekly house meetings, participate in a recovery plan set by the referring agency and DREAMS, maintain their sobriety and pay their rent on time.
“The purpose of the house is to be a drug-free setting for people with the desire to avoid alcohol and drug use. The main requirement of a sober living house is sobriety,” the pamphlet notes.
Organizers have received encouragement in their efforts from WATCh East administrator Derek Gibbs, Marie-Christine Lamphier said. He is concerned that some graduates from the treatment program can’t go home or choose not to because of family problems or other reasons.
Living in the DREAM House would give them time to reinforce what they have learned in treatment in a less restrictive but still supportive environment. It can give them a chance to see that they can live sober through peer support, she added.
While DREAM House expects some of its residents will come from WATCh East, organizers are also looking to work with probation officers and other support groups to recommend residents, Delamater said.
An open house was held Nov. 15 to raise awareness of the new effort and try to generate more support for it.
“We need more people,” Lamphier said, adding, “It takes a village to help people recover.”
People interested in helping don’t have to be experts in addiction issues, Delamater said. Volunteers are needed to mentor residents, but also to scrub a bathroom or paint walls in preparation for opening the home.
“Our goal is to make it a home,” Lamphier said, explaining that while donations of furniture and other items are welcome, they will only accept things that are in good condition, “something you are willing to live with.”
When the home opens Community GATE Vista Kahdesha Chiles will serve as manager, Delamater said, adding she hopes, that as the program develops, one of the residents will be able to move into that position.
Anyone interested in assisting with the sober living project or learning more about it is encouraged to visit the DREAMS House Facebook page or contact Chiles at the Prairie Development Center.
Reach Cindy Mullet at
crmullet@midrivers.com