The Bucyrus organization will offer family recovery housing in 2025

BUCYRUS — Recovering from addiction is hard enough. Add to that the struggle to find decent, affordable housing and it becomes even more difficult.

That’s what a Crawford County nonprofit hopes to solve by creating new family housing.

Together We Hurt, Together We Heal runs two recovery centers where residents receive treatment and support.

In the spring, the organization plans to further expand this work to include family housing. Unlike convalescence homes, the two new apartments will accommodate families. The homes will be available for rent to people leaving TWHTWH rehabilitation housing.

Having safe and affordable housing is important to your recovery. However, finding such housing in north-central Ohio is difficult, regardless of the additional challenges faced by those in recovery.

“Safe and affordable housing is important to recovery because it provides a healthy, stable and safe living environment,” said Sherry Branham-Fonner, executive director of the Richland County Mental Health and Recovery Board.

“The lack of stable housing can lead to people returning to the environment they were in before recovery. The pressures from this environment put the person at greater risk of relapse.”

Carle said she has seen residents leave public housing over the years and struggle to find a safe and affordable place to live with their children.

“There are a lot of landlords in the community, but their rent is so high that no one can afford it,” Carle said.

“Our goal for our recovery homes is to have two apartments of three bedrooms each, so that when people leave our homes they can move into family housing with their children and be able to continue their recovery for a period of time.”

Residents of family homes will continue to receive support

Carle said she anticipates households will remain in their family homes for about a year to a year and a half and continue to use support services.

“When they move from our recovery home to a family apartment, we will still be with them,” Carle said.

“We will be providing case management services and will be coming in at least once a week to check that everyone is OK. Some residents will likely continue to receive outpatient or other types of mental health counseling.”

The property is a semi-detached house that is being renovated by a local contractor.

“We looked at many, many homes,” said Ashley Crawford, recovery housing coordinator at TWHTWH.

“Then our contractor came to us and said, ‘Well, I could have this house for you. Do you want to come and watch? He was working on it, but he wanted to help us.

TWHTWH will take full ownership of the property by January 2025.

“It’ll be beautiful,” Carle said. “It has a garage where people can park. It is located on a corner plot. There is a fenced lawn for children.”

Family housing is a rarity in the recovery landscape

TWHTWH applied for grants to pay for the house. The project will also benefit from donations from the local community and the Crawford-Marion Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Services Board.

Bradley DeCamp is the executive director of the Crawford-Marion ADAMH board. He said offering alternative housing for families has unique challenges, but also offers unique benefits.

“We do have other recovery housing on the board, but we don’t currently have any family recovery housing,” he said.

“Many times, people who are in the early stages of recovery feel a sense of separation from their families. I think a joint family can help with this by providing adequate support.”

Carle said TWHTWH will collect rent to cover the cost of maintaining the house, but it won’t be anything outrageous.

“We’re not trying to make a profit, we’re trying to help people get better,” she said. “As long as we can pay our bills, we will be happy.”

She added that it is important that clients are provided with high-quality housing at every stage of recovery.

“We attach great importance to our homes. We want people to see their value. We want them to understand that after recovery and completion of the program, you can also have such a house in the future,” she said.

“We want them to know that they are valuable because everyone is valuable.”

Together We Hurt, Together We Heal also offers traditional recovery homes and family support

TWHTWH was founded in 2007 by four moms, two pastors and a teacher.

“Each mother had a son who was addicted to opiates,” Carle said. “They didn’t know what to do, where to go, so they got the pastors and the teacher involved.”

TWHTWH was incorporated and became a Christian non-profit organization in 2009. Carle stated that her ultimate goal is to provide recovery housing as well as support Crawford County residents and families affected by addiction.

In 2016, the organization opened Sycamore House, a men’s recovery home. Two years later, the Willow House women’s center was established. Both are certified by Ohio Recovery Housing, the state affiliate of the National Alliance for Recovery Residences.

Residents of Sycamore House and Willow House are required to attend outpatient counseling, 12-step meetings, and weekly faith-based meetings.

“We want them to have that relationship with their higher power or God, whatever they call that being,” Carle said.

They were also asked to set three goals for their time on the team.

“We accept people where they are and want them to decide what their path to recovery will be,” Carle said. “They have to determine for themselves what they have to do.”

Holistic recovery means health care, family healing

Carle said the goal is to provide residents with a supportive, family-like environment while at the recovery center. TWHTHW helps connect residents with resources, including health care.

“Part of recovery is staying healthy, so we take them to the doctor, the dentist to get their eyes checked and anything else they might need done,” Carle said.

Once residents are settled in, she and Crawford help them work on the next steps. This may mean finding a job, earning a GED, or working toward a certificate or degree at the Crawford Success Center.

Supporting not only those in recovery but their families has always been part of TWHTWH’s mission.

“If they are allowed to see their children, we make sure they have regular home visits and visits with their parents,” Carle said. “It’s very important to reunite the family.”

The organization also participates in health fairs, spreading the word and talking about the healing that needs to happen – not only for individuals, but also for families.

“Families are also affected by this disease but cannot go for treatment. That’s why we try to help family members too,” Carle said.

The organization encourages family members and children of addicts to attend support groups such as Al-Anon and Alateen. TWHTWH also organizes its own groups, but Carle says getting people to come can be a challenge.

“Most of them still feel like they have a drinking or drug problem – all they have to do is stop drinking and life will be fine. Not at all,” Carle said. “This is just a small step in their recovery.”