Community Corner

Oxford House Offers Hope for Those Seeking Sobriety

A new resource called the Oxford House is available to people who have gone through an alcohol or drug treatment program and aren't quite ready to move back home.

There’s a difference between not drinking alcohol and not using drugs, and living a sober life.

Now there’s a new resource for people who are committed to living a sober life called the Oxford House-Joe Prott and it’s open to people living in the greater Racine area.

Bill and Nina Frank lost their son, Ryane, to his drug addiction and they wanted to help the community by offering a place for people to go to continue focusing on their recovery. So, the Racine couple bought the house for people to focus on their recovery and named it Ryane’s House of Hope for their son.

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Oxford House is another branch of Ryan's House, and the name Joe Prott is included because each house of the organization is named for someone.

Matt Palmer, vice president of Ryan’s House of Hope Board of Directors, said residents who live in the house are required to have some length of provable sobriety and commit to staying sober. They also have to take weekly urine tests to prove their sobriety. If someone relapses, they are asked to leave.

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Residents pay $100 week towards their share of expenses, minus food expenses. But, they can live in the house as long as they need to.

“Oxford House is about relearning the life skills that you either never learned in the first place, took for granted, or ended up having someone else do for you,” Palmer said. 

While the house isn’t affiliated with any 12-step recovery groups, the Oxford House operates under the same traditions used by 12-step groups.

PJ (who didn’t want his whole name used) is one of the house’s first residents. He started living at the Oxford House in April after he left a 45-day drug treatment program and plans to live there for at least six months. He believes he’s establishing habits that are key to his sobriety.

“We’re held accountable… and if we abuse our medication, they will show us the door,” PJ said. “You are encouraged to do volunteer work, hit your (12-step meetings), look for employment – whatever you need to do.”

Recovering from an addiction is a process, PJ explained, that isn’t just about not drinking or using pain medications. While abstaining from drinking and abusing prescription drugs is the starting point, recovering means learning how to live a sober life.

“I just wasn’t ready to be on my own right away,” he said. “Once you are out, you need that sober environment to feed your energy in recovery – because without it, you don’t have a lot pushing you.

“Moreover, it’s about maintaining your sobriety and that’s priority number one.”

This is the third time he’s been in recovery. And PJ knows that living a sober life is key because without it, he won’t be able to see his son and work on gaining trust back with his family.

“My family feels much more comfortable with me doing it this way as far as earning back trust, but I’m not doing it for them, I’m doing it for me,” he said. “When you are in the midst of an addiction, you lose perspective in taking care of the basics. You just chase your addiction and you chase it all day long,” PJ said. “Here, instead of paying rent last, you pay it first.”

If you are interested in finding out more about the Oxford House, please call (262) 833-5010.


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