Sojourner Recovery Services

Sojourner Day in Fairfield
Tuesday August 14th was "Sojourner Recovery Services, Inc. and Mercy Hospital Fairfield Day in the City of Fairfield"

This is in recognition of the Sojourner Concert Series. A copy of the proclamation can be seen on here http://www.sojournerrecovery.org/images/proclamation.htm

Adolescent Art Show at the Fitton Center
During the month of August artwork created by Sojourner clients will be on display in the Student Gallery of the Fitton Center for Creative Arts in Hamilton. The artwork was created by clients from Sojourners Adolescent program. The clients were participating in the Arts in Common Program through the Fitton Center. Artist Mary Catherine Ruby worked with the Sojourner adolescent residential clients weekly with painting, drawing, and many other projects. The Fitton Center is located at 101 South Monument Avenue in Hamilton. Click here to view a Mapquest map.

United Way Day of Caring
Sojourner participated in the April 20th United Way Day of Caring sponsored by Duke Energy. Volunteers from Duke Energy helped give the landscaping at the new administrative office a makeover. We are greatly appreciative of their efforts and hard work. You can see more images on this page.

Sojourner on the News
Two Sojourner clients and a Sojourner staff member were interviewed for a Channel 5 News story. It aired April 5th and the link below will take you to the video. "Super-Pure Meth Hits Tri-State Streets - WLWT Cincinnati"
the video link

Adolescent Program Newsletter
View the Adolescent Program Newsletter by clicking on a link below:

PDF version Flash version

If you don't have it installed already, click this link to download the flash player.

Sojourner Concert Series Fundraiser
Mercy Hospital Fairfield is hosting The Sojourner Concert Series at the Fairfield Community Arts Center to raise funds for Sojourner Recovery Services.

Read article from Journal News

Volunteer Program
To learn more about Sojourner Recovery Services and the exciting volunteer opportunities that are now available. Contact Brent Russell

The article below appeared in the Hamilton Journal News on 7/31/06

Art helps recovering adolescents cope

By Richard O Jones, Staff Writer

HAMILTON — Tabatha, 16, has become “obsessed with polka dots.”

She presents a large painting of dots in various shades of pink on a navy blue background and a ceramic tile with a similar motif, along with another tile decorated with the logo of her favorite band.

Her art work will be exhibited for the first time this week at the Fitton Center for Creative Arts.

During August, artwork created by clients from Sojourner’s Adolescent Residential program will be on display in the Student Gallery of the Fitton Center. The clients received art lessons from the Arts in Common Program, which brings the arts to people who might otherwise not be able to participate. Artist Amy Edwards has been working with the Sojourner adolescent clients weekly with painting, drawing, origami and other projects.

A reception for the exhibition will be 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday. The Fitton Center is located at 101 S. Monument Ave. in Hamilton.

For Tabatha, who is in the seventh week of her second round of residential treatment at Sojourner, the art has been a way to express through painting and drawing. She hopes it will keep her from having to come back to Sojourner again. Her first stay, when she was 13, lasted 18 weeks, she said.

“I sort of fell off the track and my grades plummeted down,” she said. “I started to re-use and I wrote a poem about one of my uses that a friend found and got frightened. She told the school and the school sent me here.”

The poem talked about the pills she had been using and ended with, “That’s the only thing I want to feel/It is the only good wonderful happiest feeling I have.”

But now she has another happiness in art.

“It’s a way I can express how I feel because I have a problem with talking,” she said. “It’s a way to express myself in a better way.”

Sojourner, a Butler County agency that provides chemical dependency treatment for families and individuals, operates six different programs in the area.

The Sojourner Residential Treatment home can house up to 16 adolescents. Many of them are sent their through the juvenile court system, but they also get referrals from area schools and Butler County Children Services.

Their holistic approach treats the whole person and the whole family through each stage of the recovery process.

Betty Huff, director of the residential treatment program and known to the dozen teenagers now staying there as “Grandma Betty,” said that her clients aren’t the bad kids people sometimes think they are.

“They’re just good kids who have made bad choices,” she said. “One of the reasons for doing the art show is to open up the world to them. Even though the Fitton Center is right here in Hamilton, they don’t experience that part of the world.”

Huff said she’s always on the lookout for volunteers who can come and share their hobbies or interests with her clients. In addition to art classes, they’ve learned landscaping and gardening, Spanish, dancing and other hobbies.

“We can help them get clean and sober. But if we don’t give them alternatives to drinking and drugs, then we’re not doing our job,” Huff said. “Otherwise, when they get out of here, they go back to the same neighborhood and do the same things. We hope that they can learn to express themselves in a new way, and making art is new to a lot of the kids.

“They need to see that you can have fun not using drugs because a lot of them don’t believe that.”

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2188 or rjones@coxohio.com.

United Way Day of Caring
On Friday April 28th Sojourner participated in the United Way Day of Caring. Sojourner Home located at 449 3rd Street hosted 6 volunteers from US Bank. The volunteers worked along with clients in the program all afternoon to clean, remove weeds, plant flowers, plant bushes and even some strawberries. The end result was a much improved look for the house.

Annual Report Available
Sojourner's first Annual Report is now available. The report details outcomes and other important information covering the fiscal year 04-05 (July 1st, 2004 through June 30th, 2005). To receive a hard copy, please contact Brent Russell at brussell@sojournerrecovery.org or 513-896-3881.

Sojourner Receives Exemplary Prevention Program Award
The Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services (ODADAS) honored exemplary alcohol and other drug prevention programs at the Annual Ohio Prevention and Education Conference (OPEC). Sojourner's Perinatal Program received this award at a ceremony in December. The Exemplary Prevention Program winners are among Ohio's best in demonstrating a wide variety of effective violence, alcohol, tobacco and other drug prevention programs in diverse communities.

20th Anniversary Open House
September 7th, 2005

Sojourner Gets $131K Grant to Help Teens
By Linda Ebbing - Journal News

HAMILTON— Sojourner Recovery Services hopes to use more than $130,000 in grant money to help adolescents with substance-abuse disorders.

Sojourner, a Butler County agency that provides long-term support to families and individuals affected by chemical dependency, received $131,500 from the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati.

“The big push now is to implement evidence-based practices ... (curricula) that have been implemented and tested and show viable results of success,” said Lu Carson, associate executive director of Sojourner Recovery Services.

The foundation recently gave out almost half a million dollars in grant money to help organizations incorporate evidence-based practices into their programs.

Sojourner Recovery Services provides comprehensive care to families and individuals affected by chemical dependency — regardless of ability to pay.

Sojourner has been implementing these evidence-based practices in all of its programs, Carson said, including a program called Seven Challenges developed by clinical psychologist Dr. Robert Schwebel.

Adolescents need treatment intervention that differs vastly from adults’ treatment, Carson said.

“The seven challenges in Schwebel’s program are adolescent-friendly,” Carson said. “And so teens tend to do very well utilizing that model. We still use 12-step in our adult program and expose our teens to the 12-step program.”

The seven challenges is a treatment philosophy that is “empowering,” she said.

“The teen becomes a part of the treatment ... they are not just told what to do,” Carson said.

The grant has allowed Sojourner Recovery Services the opportunity to work with Schwebel directly, Carson said.

“We are just so grateful to the Health Foundation for their support and guidance,” she said. “What’s particularly exciting for us is that the grant allows us to be trained by Dr. Schwebel as well as his coming routinely to evaluate the program.”

For more information about Sojourner Recovery Services, call 868-7654.

The rate of alcohol and other drug use among adolescents age 12 to 17 in the Greater Cincinnati area has hovered at 15 to 20 percent for the past six years, according to information from the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati. Yet, less than 10 percent of youth who are using alcohol or other drugs receive treatment in any given year, according to the needs assessments completed by local alcohol and other drug service funding organizations in 1999-2001. These needs assessments were funded by the Health Foundation.

“The substance use disorder treatment field is far ahead of where it was 10 years ago in understanding what really works in helping youth,” said Donald Hoffman, president and CEO of the Health Foundation. “But, we have used adult models for treatment of adolescents for too long. The Health Foundation is proud to be helping agencies prepare for and implement these new practices.”

The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati is an independent foundation dedicated to improving community health and access to health care for vulnerable populations. The foundation awards grants to non-profit and governmental organizations for selected health programs and activities in Cincinnati and 20 surrounding counties in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.

		News
Home About Us Services How to Help FAQ Employment News Contact Privacy Practices		Sojourner Day in Fairfield Tuesday August 14th was "Sojourner Recovery Services, Inc. and Mercy Hospital Fairfield Day in the City of Fairfield" This is in recognition of the Sojourner Concert Series. A copy of the proclamation can be seen on here http://www.sojournerrecovery.org/images/proclamation.htm Adolescent Art Show at the Fitton Center During the month of August artwork created by Sojourner clients will be on display in the Student Gallery of the Fitton Center for Creative Arts in Hamilton. The artwork was created by clients from Sojourners Adolescent program. The clients were participating in the Arts in Common Program through the Fitton Center. Artist Mary Catherine Ruby worked with the Sojourner adolescent residential clients weekly with painting, drawing, and many other projects. The Fitton Center is located at 101 South Monument Avenue in Hamilton. Click here to view a Mapquest map. United Way Day of Caring Sojourner participated in the April 20th United Way Day of Caring sponsored by Duke Energy. Volunteers from Duke Energy helped give the landscaping at the new administrative office a makeover. We are greatly appreciative of their efforts and hard work. You can see more images on this page. Sojourner on the News Two Sojourner clients and a Sojourner staff member were interviewed for a Channel 5 News story. It aired April 5th and the link below will take you to the video. "Super-Pure Meth Hits Tri-State Streets - WLWT Cincinnati" the video link Adolescent Program Newsletter View the Adolescent Program Newsletter by clicking on a link below: PDF version Flash version If you don't have it installed already, click this link to download the flash player. Sojourner Concert Series Fundraiser Mercy Hospital Fairfield is hosting The Sojourner Concert Series at the Fairfield Community Arts Center to raise funds for Sojourner Recovery Services. Read article from Journal News Volunteer Program To learn more about Sojourner Recovery Services and the exciting volunteer opportunities that are now available. Contact Brent Russell The article below appeared in the Hamilton Journal News on 7/31/06 Art helps recovering adolescents cope By Richard O Jones, Staff Writer HAMILTON — Tabatha, 16, has become “obsessed with polka dots.” She presents a large painting of dots in various shades of pink on a navy blue background and a ceramic tile with a similar motif, along with another tile decorated with the logo of her favorite band. Her art work will be exhibited for the first time this week at the Fitton Center for Creative Arts. During August, artwork created by clients from Sojourner’s Adolescent Residential program will be on display in the Student Gallery of the Fitton Center. The clients received art lessons from the Arts in Common Program, which brings the arts to people who might otherwise not be able to participate. Artist Amy Edwards has been working with the Sojourner adolescent clients weekly with painting, drawing, origami and other projects. A reception for the exhibition will be 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday. The Fitton Center is located at 101 S. Monument Ave. in Hamilton. For Tabatha, who is in the seventh week of her second round of residential treatment at Sojourner, the art has been a way to express through painting and drawing. She hopes it will keep her from having to come back to Sojourner again. Her first stay, when she was 13, lasted 18 weeks, she said. “I sort of fell off the track and my grades plummeted down,” she said. “I started to re-use and I wrote a poem about one of my uses that a friend found and got frightened. She told the school and the school sent me here.” The poem talked about the pills she had been using and ended with, “That’s the only thing I want to feel/It is the only good wonderful happiest feeling I have.” But now she has another happiness in art. “It’s a way I can express how I feel because I have a problem with talking,” she said. “It’s a way to express myself in a better way.” Sojourner, a Butler County agency that provides chemical dependency treatment for families and individuals, operates six different programs in the area. The Sojourner Residential Treatment home can house up to 16 adolescents. Many of them are sent their through the juvenile court system, but they also get referrals from area schools and Butler County Children Services. Their holistic approach treats the whole person and the whole family through each stage of the recovery process. Betty Huff, director of the residential treatment program and known to the dozen teenagers now staying there as “Grandma Betty,” said that her clients aren’t the bad kids people sometimes think they are. “They’re just good kids who have made bad choices,” she said. “One of the reasons for doing the art show is to open up the world to them. Even though the Fitton Center is right here in Hamilton, they don’t experience that part of the world.” Huff said she’s always on the lookout for volunteers who can come and share their hobbies or interests with her clients. In addition to art classes, they’ve learned landscaping and gardening, Spanish, dancing and other hobbies. “We can help them get clean and sober. But if we don’t give them alternatives to drinking and drugs, then we’re not doing our job,” Huff said. “Otherwise, when they get out of here, they go back to the same neighborhood and do the same things. We hope that they can learn to express themselves in a new way, and making art is new to a lot of the kids. “They need to see that you can have fun not using drugs because a lot of them don’t believe that.” Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2188 or rjones@coxohio.com. United Way Day of Caring On Friday April 28th Sojourner participated in the United Way Day of Caring. Sojourner Home located at 449 3rd Street hosted 6 volunteers from US Bank. The volunteers worked along with clients in the program all afternoon to clean, remove weeds, plant flowers, plant bushes and even some strawberries. The end result was a much improved look for the house. Annual Report Available Sojourner's first Annual Report is now available. The report details outcomes and other important information covering the fiscal year 04-05 (July 1st, 2004 through June 30th, 2005). To receive a hard copy, please contact Brent Russell at brussell@sojournerrecovery.org or 513-896-3881. Sojourner Receives Exemplary Prevention Program Award The Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services (ODADAS) honored exemplary alcohol and other drug prevention programs at the Annual Ohio Prevention and Education Conference (OPEC). Sojourner's Perinatal Program received this award at a ceremony in December. The Exemplary Prevention Program winners are among Ohio's best in demonstrating a wide variety of effective violence, alcohol, tobacco and other drug prevention programs in diverse communities. 20th Anniversary Open House September 7th, 2005 Sojourner Gets $131K Grant to Help Teens By Linda Ebbing - Journal News HAMILTON— Sojourner Recovery Services hopes to use more than $130,000 in grant money to help adolescents with substance-abuse disorders. Sojourner, a Butler County agency that provides long-term support to families and individuals affected by chemical dependency, received $131,500 from the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati. “The big push now is to implement evidence-based practices ... (curricula) that have been implemented and tested and show viable results of success,” said Lu Carson, associate executive director of Sojourner Recovery Services. The foundation recently gave out almost half a million dollars in grant money to help organizations incorporate evidence-based practices into their programs. Sojourner Recovery Services provides comprehensive care to families and individuals affected by chemical dependency — regardless of ability to pay. Sojourner has been implementing these evidence-based practices in all of its programs, Carson said, including a program called Seven Challenges developed by clinical psychologist Dr. Robert Schwebel. Adolescents need treatment intervention that differs vastly from adults’ treatment, Carson said. “The seven challenges in Schwebel’s program are adolescent-friendly,” Carson said. “And so teens tend to do very well utilizing that model. We still use 12-step in our adult program and expose our teens to the 12-step program.” The seven challenges is a treatment philosophy that is “empowering,” she said. “The teen becomes a part of the treatment ... they are not just told what to do,” Carson said. The grant has allowed Sojourner Recovery Services the opportunity to work with Schwebel directly, Carson said. “We are just so grateful to the Health Foundation for their support and guidance,” she said. “What’s particularly exciting for us is that the grant allows us to be trained by Dr. Schwebel as well as his coming routinely to evaluate the program.” For more information about Sojourner Recovery Services, call 868-7654. The rate of alcohol and other drug use among adolescents age 12 to 17 in the Greater Cincinnati area has hovered at 15 to 20 percent for the past six years, according to information from the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati. Yet, less than 10 percent of youth who are using alcohol or other drugs receive treatment in any given year, according to the needs assessments completed by local alcohol and other drug service funding organizations in 1999-2001. These needs assessments were funded by the Health Foundation. “The substance use disorder treatment field is far ahead of where it was 10 years ago in understanding what really works in helping youth,” said Donald Hoffman, president and CEO of the Health Foundation. “But, we have used adult models for treatment of adolescents for too long. The Health Foundation is proud to be helping agencies prepare for and implement these new practices.” The Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati is an independent foundation dedicated to improving community health and access to health care for vulnerable populations. The foundation awards grants to non-profit and governmental organizations for selected health programs and activities in Cincinnati and 20 surrounding counties in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.
Administrative Offices 294 N. Fair Ave Hamilton, OH 45014 Phone 513.868.7654 Fax 513.868.8091