Tommy

Four months ago, Tommy was a broken man, down on his luck. He was suffering from severe depression and struggling to stay afloat, both financially and emotionally. He was unemployed. His landlord had shut off his utilities, and in the same week, his car was repossessed. Feeling alone and defeated, Tommy found himself in The Salvation Army’s Adult Rehabilitation Center.

Although initially there to seek temporary shelter from the cold, Tommy soon realized the ARC would be the one thing he needed to recover. Now after four months at the ARC, Tommy is a stronger individual who is on his way to graduating from the ARC’s six-month work-therapy program, which is dedicated towards helping men get back on their feet by providing them with the skills necessary to face daily challenges.

“I felt I had truly hit my rock bottom and that I had nothing left. Coming to the ARC was really the turning point for me,” said Tommy. “These past four months have been the best of my life.”

Tommy, 44, had been struggling with severe depression for many years. He began using cocaine at the young age of 12, and developed a 30-year addiction. His depression and addiction consumed him for most of his young-adult life. He sought help once before for his troubles, but was turned away from that program due to a lack of room. Tommy, feeling he had nowhere else to turn, decided to move into an apartment, located in an unsafe part of town.

“I admit that neighborhood was not the ideal living situation for me, but I felt I had run out of options,” Tommy said. In November of 2006, Tommy was held at gun point in an attempted robbery and was shot three times - once in each of his legs and once in his back, which just missed his spine.

“It seemed like regardless of what I did, I would wind up right in the middle of what I was trying to get away from,” explained Tommy. Tommy’s depression and addiction escalated after the shooting, and over the course of the next few years, Tommy struggled to face life’s daily hardships.

A year before coming to the ARC, Tommy was able to kick his addiction to cocaine, but was never able to completely free himself of his depression. Tommy’s decision to enroll in the ARC program came after meeting the counselors and seeing what the program had to offer.

Now, four months into the program, Tommy participates in a variety of life-skills classes, which focus on topics such as anger management and relapse prevention. His personal favorite class is Alpha class, which studies the Bible and its history. Tommy also finds relief and comfort from his journal in which he documents his thoughts and progress regarding his recovery.

He believes he is getting better every day, and he credits the ARC’s program for teaching him patience, humility and how to better interact with people. Since his time at the ARC, Tommy has reconnected with his mother and son. “My son, who just turned 16, is part of my life again thanks to the program,” Tommy said.

Through his involvement in the program, Tommy has also been able to develop a relationship with God, which he was never able to do on his own. “I’ve learned that there is nothing I can’t do with God by my side,” Tommy said.

Tommy is amazed at how wonderful everyone at the ARC has treated him over the past four months. “I thought they were going to get tired of hearing from me all of the time,” Tommy said. “But they just kept giving and helping. It’s like God built this place just for me.”

Tommy plans to explore several career opportunities after graduating from the ARC program. He is currently working towards his GED, and is job searching for a full-time position for after he graduates.

Tommy is also considering enrolling in the Stepping Out Program, which is a program for men who have completed the initial six-month program and need further assistance transitioning into independent life.