By Stephanie Grinnell

Staff Writer

In the past year and a half, two new programs have been established in southern Maine to focus on faith in a higher power as a way to break the cycle of addiction. 

Executive Director Rick Martin said faith is what sets Our Father’s House in Saco apart from other addiction recovery services. The live-in recovery program will celebrate its first anniversary in May. 

Martin said he was inspired to open the addiction recovery house three years ago while facilitating meetings for addicts of all kinds called “The Most Excellent Way,” a non-denominational recovery program with a focus on God.

Martin hasn’t always tried to help people deal with their addictions. He is a recovering cocaine addict and his addiction began nearly 20 years ago in Massachusetts, where he began selling cocaine while he was involved in the trash hauling business.

“I was a drug dealer and a bookie. I lived that criminal lifestyle into my 30s. I dealt cocaine and became my own best customer,” he said. 

In a dramatic life change, Martin moved to Aroostook County upon his release from a treatment program in Bangor, following a stint in jail for drunk driving. He lived in isolation for the next 12 years in a camp with gas lights and no running water. 

“I lived like a hermit, I was at war with society,” he said, adding he continued to drink alcohol during that time.

He showered at a friend’s house and began attending church where he met the woman who would later become his wife. At church, Martin was invited hunting by one of the men, a Maine State Trooper, whom Martin credits with re-introducing him to God.

Martin made the move to southern Maine, with his wife Shelley, to be closer to his children, who still reside in Massachusetts. He worked various jobs and began attending the New Life Church in Biddeford, where he later became an ordained minister, a title that he continues to maintain. 

Martin said his faith in God finally helped him kick his addictions to drugs and alcohol. He said he thought the same thing that helped him might be helpful to other men as well, which is what inspired him to establish Our Father’s House, a men’s only treatment program. 

After much fundraising and searching, the house at 88 North Street in Saco became the home of the program. The non-profit organization is leasing the house with an option to buy. Funding for the program and house comes mainly from grants, Martin said, however, residents are also asked to pay a small fee during their stay. If residents can’t afford to contribute at first, they are not turned away, Martin said, adding the amount is based on ability to pay. 

There is a medical technician on-site who dispenses any medications the men may need and a manager who oversees the house at night when Martin is not there. 

Martin said the need for a women’s house exists as well. He said there is another house in close proximity to Our Father’s House that would be ideal for a women’s program, but said there is not enough money coming into the program to support the addition at this time. 

Inside Our Father’s House

Our Father’s House residents are referred from hospitals, church organizations and courts from throughout Maine and parts of New Hampshire. Martin said often residents are on the brink of losing their jobs, families or children when they come to the house seeking help.

“Addiction is a funny thing. When you’re in the middle of an addiction, people don’t want to get infected by it,” Martin said, adding residents can often mend relationships with family members and employers once they have recovered from their addiction.

Each day begins with all of the residents gathering for a morning devotion and discussion of the day’s plans. 

A requirement of staying in the house is residents must attend school or maintain a job. 

“We give the first part of our day to God,” Martin said. “We try to transform the mindset to show self worth. We are in the restoration business because God is. It’s quite infectious when they realize ‘You are not just an alcoholic or addict.’” 

On the second floor of the house, there are shared bedrooms and a common room just for the residents that is off limits to the public.

“It’s a place to transition into a family atmosphere because that is what we are, a family,” Martin said. 

Up to six men can stay in the house at one time and stays can last up to a year.

Residents have several counseling options available both inside and outside the house, including Alcoholics Anonymous and the Most Excellent Way. Martin offers one-on-one counseling as a certified Christian counselor. 

“It’s a very structured program, it’s been doing a lot of good,” he said.

Our Father’s House residents 

Tim, who preferred his last name not be used, said he has been staying at Our Father’s House for one week. He decided to apply to the program on his own because he was “spiritually broken.” He said he had tried several different two- and three-day programs in the past, but none of them worked for him. 

“You can give me the knowledge, but if you don’t want it in here,” he said, tapping his chest. “You’ve got to want it for yourself.” 

Tim said he grew up in a Catholic home, but turned away from his faith when his mother died four years ago. 

“I might have blamed God for her death,” he said.

Tim spent time in different shelters and met Martin through the York County Shelter Program, where Martin was a chef prior to opening Our Father’s House. 

“He asked me to come here, but I thought I could do it on my own,” Tim said. “I let a lot of people down by going to jail. I could do the time but it’s not going to help me. This is the missing piece of the puzzle.” 

Another resident, Keith, has been living at the house for nearly five weeks. He, too, decided to get help on his own rather than waiting to be referred by another program. 

“I tried everything else for two years and nothing worked. Certainly this is,” he said. “Without this place, I wouldn’t be where I am today.”

Keith now has a full-time a job and his relationship with his family is on the mend, he said. 

Volunteer Norman Nolette is also a recovering addict who now manages the food pantry located in the attached barn. 

“I’m a reformed addict myself,” he said, poking through bags of donated bread from Panera Breads and showing off a freezer full of donated soups from Olive Garden. “I’m giving back.”

Nolette said he used to own a masonry business and manage multiple apartment buildings in southern Maine and said he was introduced to drugs by fellow local business owners. Now that he is reformed, Nolette spends time speaking with youth at the Longcreek Juvenile Detention Center and with residents of Our Father’s House about his experiences with drugs. 

“It’s all I can offer them,” he said.

Martin said he has been to seven funerals since he opened Our Father’s House, for people who did not complete the program. All of the funerals were for drug or alcohol related deaths.

“I don’t know what drives me more, the ones that make it or the ones that don’t,” Martin said.

Other programs

That drive to help people was what inspired Director Timothy Smith to begin leading a Reformers Unanimous (RU) group, which offers faith based counseling for all types of addictions during meetings once per week at the Anchor Baptist Church in Biddeford.

Smith said there are about a dozen members of the group who meet Friday evenings at the church. After hearing about RU at a seminar, he began meetings at Anchor Baptist Church a year and a half ago, Smith said. 

“I was impressed with the product,” Smith said, adding the people seemed truly reformed and could function in society. 

Smith said there is not a lot of time spent discussing what each person’s addiction problem is, often he does not know for sure what each person is seeking help for. 

“This program says addiction is in your past and doesn’t define you,” Smith said. 

A typical RU meeting is run in three phases. First, there is a group discussion and time for prayer. During that time group members can also discuss personal victories. Next, the members break up into smaller counseling groups to deal with specific problems or to work in “challenge books,” which are part of the RU curriculum.  Challenge books are a journal for members to track progress. Smith said there are points awarded for certain behaviors such as attending church, writing in a journal and reading the Bible. Tracking the points helps members see when they begin to slide off track, he said. Members are encouraged to earn 300 points per month, an average of 75 points per week. 

“If they are not earning points, we challenge them to earn more,” Smith said. “It helps keep them on track.”

The third portion of a typical meeting is spent studying a textbook written by RU Founder Steve Curington. The textbook is based on Curington’s experiences as an addict and how he changed his life, Smith said. 

Meetings are not the only time help is available, there are several church services throughout the week attended by RU members, Smith said.

“This is an extension of our church,” he said. 

Smith said he felt there was a need for a faith-based recovery program in southern Maine. 

“It’s an area that can use a program like this,” he said.

For more information about Our Father’s House, contact Martin at 571-8290, ricmartinatofh@yahoo.com or visit www.ourfathershousemaine.org. 

For more information about Reformers Unanimous, contact Smith at 423-7870 or visit www.reformu.com.