Paul Molloy’s vision was to establish self-supporting, self-governed homes for recovering alcoholics and addicts across America. The article highlights the success of these houses, where recovering individuals work together, abide by simple rules, and maintain a drug-free environment. The expansion of Oxford House, despite initial skepticism, led to Congress passing a law to support the model nationally, with state funds allocated for similar initiatives. The article explores the challenges and debates surrounding the concept, emphasizing oxford house traditions the transformative impact it has had on residents’ lives.
A tribute to our late co-founder and CEO, Paul Molloy
It’s a chance for a supportive, sober living environment, but like any community, Oxford Houses have their own set of unwritten rules and established practices. Knowing these beforehand can make your transition smoother and help you integrate successfully. By adhering to them, residents learn responsibility, accountability, and conflict resolution, all crucial for sustained sobriety and re-integration into society. This is where the principle of rotating leadership comes into play, ensuring that power is distributed, diverse voices are heard, and everyone has the opportunity to develop crucial life skills. While peer support is inherently organic, the Oxford House also incorporates structured resources to guide and inform the recovery process.
Regional Coordinators and support staff serve as crucial links between individual Oxford Houses and the wider organization. They provide invaluable guidance, training, and assistance to house members, helping them navigate challenges and implement best practices. By taking on different roles, members gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and responsibilities involved in running an Oxford House. This fosters empathy, collaboration, and a stronger sense of ownership within the community. The Oxford House model understands that recovery is rarely a solitary journey. The strength of mutual encouragement stems from the shared understanding that residents are not alone in their struggles.
- Each House represents a remarkably effective and low cost method of preventing relapse.
- Oxford House should remain forever non-professional, although individual members may be encouraged to utilize outside professionals whenever such utilization is likely to enhance recovery from alcoholism.
- While peer support is inherently organic, the Oxford House also incorporates structured resources to guide and inform the recovery process.
- During our drinking and drug use years, and even before, many of us found it difficult to accept authority.
Oxford House of Virginia Mission
The Oxford House Manual serves as the central resource, detailing the specific guidelines and expectations that promote responsible behavior and community amongst its members. Maintaining sobriety within an Oxford House is paramount, as regular house meetings allow residents to support each other and reinforce these commitments, ensuring a pathway to sustained recovery. One of the greatest threats to the sobriety of a recovering alcoholic or drug addict is loneliness.
The Importance of Group Support and Accountability
For a couple of months in 1975, he found himself living on the streets and begging strangers for money before he entered a rehabilitation program. He moved to a county-run halfway house in Silver Spring, MD, to recover but soon learned that the facility was about to close. Things that I have learned through AA and Oxford House are an attitude of gratitude, acceptance, love, forgiveness, compassion, and the willingness to take that next step. Oxford Houses are democratically self-run by the residents who elect officers to serve for terms of six months. In this respect, they are similar to a college fraternity, sorority, or a small New England town. Officers have fixed terms of office to avoid bossism or corruption of egalitarian democracy.
Second, an Oxford House must follow the democratic principles in running the house. Third, an Oxford House must, in essence be a good member of the community by obeying the laws and paying its bills. The only members who will ever be asked to leave an Oxford House are those who return to drinking, using drugs, or have disruptive behavior, including the nonpayment of rent.
A recovering individual can live in an Oxford House for as long as he or she does not drink alcohol, Drug rehabilitation does not use drugs, and pays an equal share of the house expenses. The average stay is about a year, but many residents stay three, four, or more years. The most important traditions revolve around self-support, self-governance, and democratic decision-making.
Rotating leadership also ensures that a variety of perspectives are considered when making decisions that affect the entire house. Each member brings their unique experiences, strengths, and insights to the table. This hands-on experience helps to builds confidence, and develop valuable skills that translate directly into success in their personal and professional lives. Each member, regardless of their background or experience, is given the chance to step up and contribute in a meaningful way.
Each member pays EES (Equal Expense Share) which includes the total amount of rent due for the month as well as the cost of utilities, telephone, cable TV and any other expenses that the house includes in its common expenditures. Some houses collect EES from its members on a monthly basis while many houses choose to collect EES on a weekly basis. This monthly or weekly amount varies from state to state and house to house and can range anywhere from $125 a week to $250 a week.
The Oxford House Model provides a unique and successful system of operations that differs from traditional sober living homes and halfway houses. In its simplest form, an Oxford House is a shared residence where people in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction can live together and support each other in a drug and alcohol-free environment. An Oxford House Chapter is an additional level of support for individual Oxford Houses. Chapters are important links in making the democratic system of organization underlying Oxford House™ work. The Chapter is the place where all the members of the Oxford House family of individual houses help each other to stay on track and to remain effective. The Chapter is also the place where individuals expand their network of sober friends as Chapters host all kinds of social events that bring their community together.
Oxford Houses work because they are:
It is not unusual that an individual who gets rejected at one house applies at another house with an opening and gets accepted. If a house votes to accept you, you can tell them whether or not you accept the invitation to move in. Alternatively, if you’d like to send your application to all houses near you that have an opening, you can Apply Online. Oxford House, Inc. is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that employs both office and field staff.