Windham – For years, Ted St. John had a dream. Some might say a lofty one, but nonetheless, a dream. He dreamed of seeing a residential recovery house for substance abuse in Portage County. His vision of a residential recovery house is well on the way to fruition. He’s recently established a nonprofit organization called Hope Town and through Hope Town he was able to purchase property in Windham to begin the process of making his dream a reality.
Hope Town is a safe, clean, structured place for those who are motivated to change their circumstances. The residential facility is a fully-furnished place to live, where there are no credit checks, no utilities costs, and no security deposits. The rent is $450/month and must be paid prior to moving in. Now, many of the people needing this service have nothing. They have used their last dime to get their last fix or were just released from jail, a detox facility etc. That’s ok, Hope Town will work with them and help them get their first month’s rent. Help includes analyzing who they know, who would be willing to help them get on the road to recovery. An administrator from Hope Town will sit down with the potential client to make the call and explain the program. Most family members are more than willing to help their loved one get on the path to recovery. Friends and family who help with the first month’s rent will be informed of the progress before being asked to do any more. Usually the client has a job within the first few weeks and can pay their way after the initial $450.
Hope Town Recovery Housing (HTRH) implements the social model of recovery, which is a drug-free/alcohol-free environment that is peer-oriented, maintained by residents (including resident house managers) and not treatment- focused. HTRH promotes long-term recovery, self-initiative, and increased independence by providing residents with immersion in recovery culture, structured daily living, peer to peer recovery, support, and regular random drug testing. They also work on life skills and workforce development connection to community resources, being a part of the community thru community service, case management of legal employment, along with working on medical and family issues. Seeing this first hand, Ted St, John knew that this was a great idea and a need for the very area where he grew up. Through his innovation and his commitment to seeing people beat the strong holds of addiction, St. John set the wheels in motion.
St. John already had established an out-patient clinic for substance abuse in Rootstown a few years ago. St. John co-owns and is a founder of that organization. Hope Village is an outpatient treatment center for substance abuse. Although this was a great start, St. John knew it was not enough. He knew statistically that recovery housing improves the chances for staying clean and being productive in the community. Therefore, he patiently kept on working toward his dream.
Knowing it would take many hands to get the job done, he began building connections with law enforcement, mental health organizations, government officials, friends, business owners etc. sharing his dream and giving examples of how and why it works. It’s because of those connections he developed over the years, that Hope Town became a reality, rather than just a vision.
St. John received financial help from a friend and received grants to get the ball rolling. All these connections helped him when he was ready to launch the new non-profit recovery housing in Windham called Hope Town. He is partnered with OHIO Means Jobs to help with employment needs. He also has connections to help residents get social security cards and identification cards as well. Many clients don’t have copies of these documents that they’d need to get a job. Obtaining a job and being a productive citizen in society is a huge part of recovery.
Hope Town will be two 20-bed residential housing units, one for men and one for women recovering from addiction. The men’s resident facility is scheduled to open in May, the women’s later in the summer. Each facility will have five apartments, that will be open to each other allowing the residents to interact. Once there, they will continue working on the goals and treatment plan they chose that best suits their needs. Those without jobs will get help seeking them and also help with interviews, transportation, packing lunches, clothing and whatever they might need to be productive citizens in the work force. They will be required to participate in community service and recreation opportunities as well. He has secured the use of a gym near-by for basketball games, indoor walking and use of exercise equipment.
Hope Town will not just be in the community, they will be a part of the community. The residents are expected to keep up the landscape and yards of the facility, including the parking lot. No littering or cigarette butts will be permitted to be left on the ground. The residents will participate in community service and be out and about. They are plugged into jobs if they need one, community service, and other cultural things to get them more involved in others, rather than themselves. They will have an entourage of support put in place. Professional counselors, peer counselors, etc., each of these play a vital role in their recovery walk.
The community has embraced the idea and has already started helping to make it a reality. Many residents have been helping with the renovations, gathering up gently used furnishings and doing whatever needs to be done. Each unit will be fully furnished, right down to the cooking utensils. Ted St. John said, the community has been great in helping him make this dream happen.
At Hope Town, they will understand how recovery works, because they have made recovery work. St. John knows first-hand how it works, as he is a recovering substance abuser himself. He has seen first-hand how important recovery housing is in the recovery process.
Hope Town is a clean, safe place for people who need a bridge between where they were (jail, detox center etc.) to where they want to be, but are not ready to live on their own. They are a 501c3 organization that not only has professional experience in recovery, but personal experience as well. Recovery house living requires one to maintain the integrity of the facility and helps promote residents to have self-respect, self-discipline, and hold them to stringent standards that include a zero tolerance.
A typical day is to attend check-in, participate in morning meetings, (called meditation,) prepare meals, do daily chores — like cleaning personal areas and community areas. They will be required to fellowship with house peers, attend recovery support meetings, attend intensive outpatient program (IOP), after care, work, community service etc. go to work or look for employment, they have resources to help with that. Residents are expected to submit to regular random drug screenings and breathalyzer tests, follow treatment plans, develop a recovery plan, gain employment or volunteering an agreed number of hours per week, attend weekly housing meetings, adhere to the visitor and curfew policy. These are a lot, but it’s been proven that these methods work.
Ted St. John is an Air Force veteran, a recovering substance abuser, and the co-owner and CEO of Hope Village Recovery Services LLC too . He went through the recovery experience at Glenbeigh Hospitals, where he later became admissions manager. Ted served as Director of Operations at First Step Recovery in Warren and Chief of Operations at New Day Recovery Housing in Boardman. He has led several of these to get proper credentials for licensing for recovery services. He has opened several recovery houses and helped with an 85-bed facility for local agencies. Through the leadership of St. John, they were able to maintain their accreditation, and licenses at county, state and national standards.
St. John’s extensive business knowledge has helped him launch his dream. He was a gym owner and a national salesman for steel producers. He currently serves on the Board of Education in Windham and is on the advisory Board of the Portage County Dockets, Hope Court and Star Court. St. John resides in Windham.
Hope Town is a nonprofit business that has no connection to Hope Village except the founder is the same. Hope Town is board-run with St. John as the administrator.
For more information visit https://hopetown.org
