PORT ANGELES — Oxford House residents celebrated Saturday the opening of the Port Angeles chapter’s sixth home for recovering drug addicts.
Residents moved in last month to Greenlief House, named for Amy Greenlief, who purchased the house, but showed off their new home Saturday with an open house and a ribbon-cutting.
Greenlief said she was already in the market looking to purchase another rental home when she read a Peninsula Daily News article about Oxford House. She said she saw it as not only a personal investment but an investment in her community.
Oxford House is a worldwide organization that provides housing for recovering addicts. Residents say the homes provide a supportive family of recovering addicts who hold each other accountable and teach each other the skills needed to be productive members of society.
According to www.oxfordhouse.org: “A recovering individual can live in an Oxford House for as long as he or she does not drink alcohol, does not use drugs, and pays an equal share of the house expenses. The average stay is about a year, but many residents stay three, four, or more years.”
“I really think that if you want to become a productive member of society and break your addiction, you really need a stable place to live, where they are going to support you in not doing the things that got you in trouble in the first place,” Greenlief said.
She had the home remodeled to transform a downstairs family area into two additional bedrooms. Because of her purchase, Oxford House was able to gain its sixth house in Port Angeles and move eight recovering addicts into stable homes.
“Unfortunately for the community, I’ll probably never run out of tenants here,” Greenlief said. “It seemed like it would be a good thing from a landlord’s point of view … and it’s helping people become stable members of the community.”
Jeffrey Haley, an Oxford House resident who has been clean for 486 days, said he was ecstatic when he learned another house was opening.
Each of the five house has had long waiting lists, seven to 10 people per house, he said. People wanted to get into housing that would support their recovery, but there wasn’t enough room.
“Everyone was always looking [for more houses], but before the newspaper article and before people knew what Oxford was, people shied away from the idea of opening a house for [recovering] addicts,” he said.
If another Oxford House opens, he said it would be filled “instantly.”
Haley and Eric Simms are two “core members” who are opening the house. Simms said there are already two people on the waiting list at Greenlief House and that five interviews had been scheduled.
Among the newest residents is Winston Pedy, who said he had been on a wait list for about a month. He was accepted into other houses, but it wasn’t until Greenlief opened last month that there was actually room for him to move in.
Pedy, who has been free of pain pills and alcohol for more than 100 days, said Oxford House’s zero-tolerance policy is what is helping him stay clean.
“It has helped to live in a house where everyone is committed to living a clean and sober life,” he said. “Everybody is encouraged to grow and change. We are encouraged to reach our full potential.”
He said that after moving into an Oxford House, he has been able to attend two or three meetings per day and he is surrounded by people who are pushing to become better and break the cycle of addiction.
Port Angeles Mayor Patrick Downie, who attended the open house, told Oxford House residents that they are making a difference in the community by helping each other stay clean and helping others start their recovery.
“These are the kinds of moments that bring great joy to me,” he said after cutting the ribbon. “You guys have put your life in order and put your lives back together.”
He said Port Angeles is a community that has struggled with addiction, but he believe that through programs like Oxford House, things are becoming better.
“You guys are a living witness that the program works,” he said. “I admire each and every one of you who have made it to this point in your life.”
Those interested in renting to Oxford House can contact Marty Selvidge, Washington outreach services for Oxford House, at marty.selvidge@oxford house.org.
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Reporter Jesse Major can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsula dailynews.com.
Amy Greenlief purchased a house to rent to Oxford House residents after learning about the program for recovering drug addicts. (Jesse Major/Peninsula Daily News)
