Nonprofit seeks funding from county
WAYNESBURG – Robert Terry saw firsthand how Waynesburg’s first “Oxford House” residence helped recovering drug addicts and alcoholics since it opened last fall.
The house along Cumberland Street is a group home rented from a landlord that houses up to six men who support each other to stay clean and take a greater role in the community.
It’s much different than a typical halfway house that takes in recently released jail inmates and mandates treatment. At the Oxford House, named after the Maryland-based organization that promotes the concept, the residents take an interest in helping each other succeed with peer support and a zero-tolerance policy for relapses.
That’s why Terry and the Steps Inside nonprofit rehabilitation organization he oversees wants to bring two more such rehab homes to Greene County to help others with addiction problems.
“This is an effort to get sincere people who want help,” Terry said.
Terry’s organization has been working in Greene County for more than a decade, but he noticed there were no “sober and clean long-term living facilities” for recovering addicts. He settled on the Oxford House initiative after finding “evidence-based” studies that showed it helped more than halfway houses.
Tom Musgrove, a recovering alcoholic, serves as the president of the house that currently holds five men.
“The proof is there,” he said. “It’s evidence-based. It’s an extension of the 12-step system.”
Another resident, Michael Jacobs, has spent time in state prison and relapsed on heroin after entering a halfway house upon his release. He had few other options recently and was concerned what might happen if he lived alone in an apartment.
“The halfway house is polluted with everything,” Jacobs said. “You’re stuck with everything you don’t need in there.”
He found the support he needed upon entering Oxford six weeks ago.
“I’m doing the best I ever have in this house,” he said.
Terry said the rehab house saves taxpayer money because it is self-sufficient in just a few months when residents are paying rent and working.
His organization wants to open another Oxford House for men and a separate one tailored for women. They have strict standards for admitting new residents – 80 percent of the current residents must approve a new tenant – and any drugs or alcohol in the house means immediate eviction. The “startup costs” are about $25,000 to $30,000 per house and it takes six months to a year to fully implement, Terry said.
“Once it’s up and running, this will be a resource for the community,” Terry said.
Terry spoke at Thursday’s county commissioners meetings asking officials to consider an earlier request from Steps Inside of at least $50,000 to pay for those startup costs associated with the Oxford House initiative. Furnishing must be purchased and the first few months of rent and utilities need to be paid before potential tenants can be vetted for the home, Terry said.
Commissioners Charles Morris and Blair Zimmerman met with Terry three weeks ago to discuss the request, but no decision has been made on whether they will give the organization the funding.
“You have a limited amount of money to spend on programs … and they’re not all successful,” Morris said during the meeting. “It’s not something we’ve ruled out, but it’s something we haven’t made a decision on yet. We don’t have a consensus between the three of us.”
Zimmerman said they have been impressed by the program despite initial neighborhood concerns, although he added there are a variety of factors they must consider.
“We like the idea of it, but there have been some concerns,” Zimmerman said. “We get asked for funding all the time, and we have to prioritize.”
County Human Services Administrator Karen Bennett praised the program and noted the county gave $10,000 to Steps Inside for the startup costs of the first house and helped it secure a $5,000 grant from another source. However, she said county officials want more time to monitor the success of the current house and whether it eventually produces a waiting list for new residents.
Regardless, Terry said they will pursue the two new Oxford House options within the county in the near future by securing outside grants if needed.
“You’re given dignity the first day,” Terry said of when people enter. “He can walk around with his head held up.”
They’ve also worked to help the community with outreach and are trying to alleviate neighborhood concerns by inviting people to join them in a covered-dish Fourth of July celebration at their Cumberland Street home.
That’s important for someone such as Musgrove who thinks Oxford can help someone out there looking for support.
“This is about getting out there and being a part of society again,” Musgrove said.