Friends of Recovery, Inc. – Who we are and why our work and your support are so important
When people hear the term alcoholic or drug addict, they sometimes think of a homeless drunk or a perhaps a criminal who would be desperate enough to steal for drug money.
The truth is, almost everyone knows or has known someone who has experienced the agony of addiction and alcoholism and they don’t “fit the description”. The face of addiction is diverse, and includes doctors, lawyers, judges, police officers, veterans and mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters. Many in recovery began their journey in an Oxford House, including its founder, Paul Molloy, a Commerce Department attorney under President Nixon.
If it weren’t for Madison Oxford Houses, I would not be alive today. The peer support that is inherent in the Oxford House model has been critical to my recovery. At Madison Oxford Houses I am more than just a member of a house; I am part of a recovery community.
-----Keith, current member, 30 months .
Madison, Wisconsin - Nine Oxford Houses and counting
Friends of Recovery, Inc. (F.O.R.) is a Wisconsin non-profit organization whose mission is to find, maintain and mentor safe and affordable housing for men and women recovering from alcohol and drug addiction. Our support is based on the model created by Oxford House, Inc. This model creates self-supporting, comfortable homes where recovering addicts can live independently, but supported by others in recovery.
A part of recovery is getting out of your head and into something bigger than you. Oxford House service work has provided me with a structure to better myself, while preparing housing for the next generation of recovering addicts and alchoholics.
-----Bill L - OH alumni
Since 2001, F.O.R. and its founders have helped establish nine Oxford Houses in Madison. To fulfill its mission, F.O.R. searches for willing landlords and works with local community groups and volunteers to set up the house so that they are move-in ready for the new members. F.O.R. does this by providing no interest loans to the new house to pay for the initial rent and security deposit, utility deposits, furnishings, etc. New members can move into a ready-made home, only needing to furnish their own food, clothes, linens and other personal items. They pay a weekly rent and a sober deposit.
To do this, F.O.R. must raise funds. For F.O.R to provide this safe and affordable alternative for recovering alcoholics and addicts to master their sobriety before having to re-enter their home and family environment or establish their own household, it needs your help.
Oxford House saved my life. I relapsed and was living in hell. Went to treatment and heard about Oxford House. Since moving in, I have learned to live life sober and fun, one day at a time.
-----P., current member
How much MONEY do we need and how will we use it?
We are currently in need of $10,000 to open our newest house in Madison, Wisconsin and to meet our goal of opening up to four new houses each year in Wisconsin. Yes, the need is that great!
Opening a new house is very expensive. All the furnishings from dishes to beds, lamps and simple electronics, as well as first month’s rent, security and utility deposits, etc., must be in place before the first member can move in. F.O.R. provides all the funding so that members can focus on learning to master their addiction in a safe environment.
Why the Oxford House model?
IT WORKS! Oxford House has three primary rules that provide for the stability and success of the model.
First and foremost is sobriety. Any member who relapses and drinks alcohol or uses drugs must be expelled immediately. This provides the safety that house members need and deserve.
Second, each member must pay an equal share of expenses. The house must be financially self-supporting.
Third, the house must be run on a democratic basis. Each house has elected officers, including both a treasurer and controller to handle the money such as rent collection and bill paying. The President ensures that weekly meetings run smoothly and will assist in conflict resolution. The secretary keeps meeting minutes from week to week so that everyone is on the same page. Finally, the coordinator assigns weekly chores and checks to make sure they are completed. The positions are elected every six months to provide members with the opportunity to learn new skills and take on additional responsibilities that assist in gaining mastery over their sobriety.
Members who live in an Oxford House in good standing have a better than 60% chance of maintaining life-long sobriety
There are currently over 1500 Oxford Houses in the United States, Canada and Great Britain. Researchers at DePaul University have been studying the Oxford House model for over 10 years and have found that more than 60% of members who have remained living in or left an Oxford House in good standing maintained their sobriety. By comparison, most treatment centers, half-way houses and other such facilities have less than a 10% success rate. Members typically live in an Oxford House for approximately 15 months.
To find out more about this model, read more testimonials from those whose lives were saved thanks to the time they spent as a member at an Oxford House, and to view a short 60 Minutes interview with Oxford House founder Paul Molloy, visit www.oxfordhouse.org
F.O.R. does not rely on funding from any government body; We need You to fulfill our mission
F.O.R. and Oxford Houses are not government-funded treatment or halfway houses, which means no tax money is used to directly open or operate them. Members are responsible for paying their own weekly rent which is used to pay for the house rent and utilities of the house.
Future goal
Currently, Oxford Houses are set up to accommodate adult members only. There is however a great need for houses where a woman can live with her children. Imagine what is must be like to have a toddler and want more than anything to get clean and sober and raise their child in an addiction free environment. What if the only place you have is in an abusive relationship where both are addicted to drugs and/or alcohol? Her chances for recovery are virtually non-existent and the child will suffer tremendously. We must meet this need!
Please support F.O.R. and Oxford House
If left untreated, alcoholism and drug addictions are almost always fatal. Please consider helping us save the lives of those in our own community. Treatment such as counseling and meetings are important but they’re not enough. They introduce addicts to living a life free of drug and alcohol abuse but they don’t truly help them fully recover. To master their addiction, alcoholics and addicts need a safe and comfortable place to live to learn how to “re-enter” their life.
F.O.R. has been and remains, poised to provide everything needed to open additional Oxford Houses. With your support, F.O.R. can complete its’ mission so that every alcoholic and addict who wants to be free of the addiction has the resources necessary to accomplish that goal.
Thank you from all those in recovery from alcohol and drug abuse who will benefit from the second chance your donation will provide.
