House of Hope participant tells how program helped turn around her life

Editor's note: The name of the House of Hope resident has been changed to protect her privacy.

CELINA - Nicole knew that if she didn't change her life, she would remain in jail or die from her heroin addiction.

She had been arrested and spent the previous 13 months in jail before being accepted into the program in March after two interviews.

"I could have easily said 'let me go to prison' because I had four months left. Let me do my four months and just be done and not go on probation, but that's not the choice I picked. I knew that I was ready to better myself and I knew that this place was going to be the place to help me. Prison wouldn't. Prison would have just slowed me down or made things worse," she said.

She completed the program in August and has been heroin-free for 21 months, spending five of those months in the House of Hope to become self-reliant and drug-free.

"They teach you how to live again. When you've been in the lifestyle I was for so many years, you forget how to live life," she said.

Nicole was baptized while at the house, gave her testimony at Waynestock in St. Marys this summer and attends church several times a week.

She has a job, home and vehicles, which would not have been possible without the support and guidance from volunteers earlier this year.

"House of Hope, to sum it up, helped save my life. It gave me a second chance when others didn't want to give you a second chance. This place is all about chances. The support system here is amazing," she explained.

House of Hope has helped eight women overcome heroin addiction since opening last December.

All of the women are still succeeding. Six are either enrolled or have completed the program and two women left for personal reasons, executive director Tonya Huber said.

Moving into the house and facing the unknown were the scariest prospects when she started but the support the program offers changed that, Nicole said.

"Once you enter this house, you have so much support. I think that's the scariest thing for a lot of girls, which is not knowing what you're coming into and it's scary at first. Once you get settled in, you see all the support you have, not just in the house but in the community," she added.

"We are like a family here as well because not all the girls have family outside of here possibly, so we are their family," Huber said.

The women take classes about budgeting, building resumes and interviewing for job, she said.

House of Hope provides a strong base but after the program the women must choose to continue on the path they started, Nicole said.

"I just want to be a great role model to my kids. 'Mom might have been here but look where she is now,' " she said.

She thinks the House of Hope is a great opportunity for women and a community necessity. She thanked Mercer County Common Pleas Court Judge Jeffrey Ingraham and House of Hope for the opportunity to live there rather than in prison.

Nicole remains in contact with Huber, other volunteers and the women who were in the program with her.

Program plans include expanding the support for participants to include visits from those who have already completed the course, Huber said.

Four women are to move into the home by the end of the year, she said.

Board members are very selective in whom they allow into the program, Huber said.

Participants must stay in the five-phase program for at least eight months and up to two years, Huber said. The women receive more free time and privileges as they meet the standards for each phase.

"They say the first time you use heroin, one hit, it takes you two years to get your mind back to where you once were," she said.

Volunteers provide transportation for the women because they cannot have cars and manage the house to help residents at any time, Huber said. Volunteers also help with cooking classes, Bible studies, crafts, resume building and applying for jobs.

"You get a bond with them after so long. They become part of your family here, too," Nicole.

The community has responded and supported the program by donating food and volunteering time, Huber said.

The support and care given may soon be expanded to help men.

"We are now starting to plan and build a foundation for a men's home. We hope to have that completed within a year," Huber said.

The men's home would be located between Foundations Behavioral Health Services and the Mercer County Sheriff's Office on state Route 29, she said.

The men's home would be about half a mile from the women's home. Board members hope to start fundraising for the home in January, she said.

"It's going to take some help and support from the community and from everyone because we're not government funded," Huber said.

Fundraising for the men's home will have a $100,000 target. The men's program will be structured exactly like the women's program, she added.

The Mercer County Sheriff's Office has had very few issues with women from the House of Hope, sheriff Jeff Grey said.

He respects the women's decision to enroll and complete the course.

He is also excited for the potential men's home but has concerns about the homes being located so closely together.