Letter from a Grateful Father

A Grateful Father
To House of Hope,

Thank you House of Hope for all that you have done for our daughter and family. It has been over five months since my first contact with House of Hope and you should be very proud of your staff and their dedication to helping those in need during our time of crisis.

I would like to share with you how we ended up at House of Hope. I had been visiting with my daughter in jail and she said, “Dad, I’m tired of the life I have been living” and that she was ready to change her life and would we find a place for her to go when she was released from jail.

We searched the internet, contacted many different organizations, and finally a friend of a friend referred us to House of Hope. My daughter contacted the House and everyone was hopeful she would be accepted. Because we did not know when she would be released from jail we did not know if she would be able to get in because of the number of clients they accept at any given time.

Well, the time came for her to be released from jail and, of course, it was in the middle of the night and unexpected. That morning I contacted House of Hope and explained my situation and that I did not want to have my daughter on the street. Kelly did everything she could possibly do to get our daughter admitted quickly. She called me back in a matter of hours after working with staff at the House and said to bring her in early the next morning.

I worked out of town and drove home that night, picked up my daughter and took her to the House the next morning. I remember meeting Kelly for the first time and she said, Don’t worry. We will take good care of your daughter.”

I left House of Hope that morning feeling upbeat, happy, thankful, hopeful and blessed that our daughter was in a safe, secure, loving place and that she would get help and guidance to help beat this drug addiction I call a monster.

We visited our daughter on Sundays and family nights as often as possible. We saw progress each week in her and every one of the other clients that are served. This appears to be a very structured environment and if you want to succeed the tools are there to succeed.

Our daughter has now moved on to her next step in recovery, which is sober living. She has gone back to school, and is showing great promise. This weekend will be our daughter’s first visit home in several years after five months of sober living. We look forward to her spending time with us and her three children this weekend and hope this is the start of great things to come. We believe that all of these things are happening in her life for a reason and part of that is House of Hope providing that HOPE.

Again, thank you to House of Hope and your wonderful staff for everything that you do.

Sincerely,

Mike and Pam O. and family

Keri Today

Keri
I was a meth addict for 13 years and this year I will have nine years sober. At the end of my using I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. I was in jail for a nine-month sentence, and ready and willing to get help. My friend found House of Hope, and after being release after three months of my sentence, I immediately called House of Hope. I lived in Bakersfield but drove to San Pedro the next day. Ever since that day my life has been changed. I knew I was in the right place at the right time.

After four months in the House I went to live in House of Hope’s sober living. I lived there another nine months. I started going to Harbor College, and got a job on the waterfront at a seashell shop. Though I lost custody of my children, by parents adopted them.

I met my husband at the Beacon House – a recovery program for men – down the street from House of Hope – at a dance / social event between the two houses. He graduated the program a little earlier than me, but when I graduated, he got a job in the oil fields in Bakersfield and we moved close to my parents.

We are coming up on our five-year wedding anniversary! His 11-year old son lives with us, and I pick up my own children every day at school, take them to their school sports programs, and am very involved in their lives.

Today I am self-employed and sell women’s clothing and accessories. My husband, my 18 year old son, Brandon, and I recently started an ATM business as well, owning ATM machines placed at local businesses.

So many of the staff of House of Hope were at our wedding. I am still very connected to staff and the people in the house, and I regularly go to their events – I will be at Bingo next month. I’m very open about my sobriety and talk about it openly on Facebook and in business, and with family and friends. Often times people who are struggling will come to me for help for this reason, and I am always available to them.