Next Steps for Life ministry growing its work to help residents through an 18-month addiction recovery program, combining curriculum, labor and religion.
Director of Discipleship Ministry Jennifer Willis said she hopes the program can help men and women struggling with addiction reform their lives and find religion. Willis said she hopes each person can learn from the program and discover freedom.
“Our ministry teaches structure, discipline, we have a full classroom curriculum that teaches the roots of addiction,” Willis said. “And we do that as a group, but we also do personalized studies for them.”
Willis said the program assists people struggling with addiction or released from jail, taking them through a transformation period. Willis said the program is broken into four phases. Willis said the program also requires participants to earn a GED.
“We just really hold their hand and walk them through a complete transition so that they can be functioning, productive members of society,” Willis said.
Willis said in the internship phase of the program participants are required to hold stable employment. Willis said they also take financial classes during this phase.
“When you come in you’re a student for 12 months and you’re an intern for six months,” Willis said. “And the internship is very important, and that’s why our internship is 18 months long. You don’t graduate until you complete the internship.”
Willis said personalized studies examine traumas, character building, breaking down their situation and personal struggles. Willis said available life classes teach boundaries, parenting, anger management and overcoming destructive emotions.
“You know we like to have a family setting here, but also highly structured and disciplined and what it’s like to be shown love. And what its like to really be told in love personal problems that have caused you this grief.” Allen said. “These root issues. And really our goal is to dig at those roots. Because addiction is really what you can see. It’s the surface problem. But there are always root issues, so we really go for the root.”
Willis said personalizing studies for participants is the backbone of the ministry.
Willis said some people come in with other life controlling issues. Willis said the program helps people that may not know how to operate at a normal, functional level due to trauma or chaos in their lives.
