GOOD SHEPHERD GRACENTER

Gracenter provides only one program, transitional housing and support services for homeless women to recover from chronic drug and alcohol addiction. Participants make a six-month commitment to the program and may stay up to two years to complete their recovery goals.

Gracenter clients have an excellent recovery rate due to use of the best practices in the recovery field which include: a) The 12-Step Program, which is practical and effective, b) Restorative Justice practices of accepting responsibility for one’s actions, repairing the harm through apology, restitution, changing one’s behavior from negative acts to positive ones and giving back to the community, and c) Motivational Interviewing, which helps people explore their reluctance to change specific behaviors and includes empathy, support of self-efficacy and autonomy.

In addition, Gracenter adheres to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) guidelines to effectively support a life in recovery through "a process of change through which individuals improve their health and wellness, live a self-directed life and strive to reach their full potential.” SAMHSA outlines four major dimensions: health, home, purpose and community. All four dimensions are integral parts of Gracenter:

1) Health: "Overcoming or managing one’s disease(s) as well as living in a physically and emotionally healthy way.” (SAMHSA) Gracenter links women to primary healthcare and mental health services; they are provided with three healthy meals each day, healthy cooking workshops, and onsite exercise classes. All women are encouraged and supported in having healthy relationships with family and friends.

2) Home: "Stable and safe place to live.” (SAMHSA) Gracenter provides women with safe, drug and alcohol-free transitional housing for up to two years and a positive peer community to support their recovery.

3) Purpose: "Meaningful daily activities, such as a job, school, volunteerism, family caretaking or creative endeavors, income and resources to participate in society.” (SAMHSA) Gracenter uses Motivational Interviewing in one-to-one recovery mentoring, encouraging each woman to design her individualized recovery plan, and links her to higher education, internships and employment opportunities. Gracenter also provides onsite skill-building classes and workshops, including financial literacy and opportunities for budgeting and saving.

4) Community: "Relationships and social networks that provide support, friendship, love and hope.” (SAMHSA) Women at Gracenter are supported in rebuilding important relationships with their families and loved ones and participating in social and cultural activities. They give back to the wider community through volunteering and engage in peer mentoring and sponsoring other women in the 12-Step program.

Service Delivery

The following steps encompass Gracenter’s Service Delivery Plan.

Step 1, Needs Assessment: With the support of the Program Manager, each
resident has the opportunity to review, identify and assess her needs in the area of substance abuse, securing future stable housing, mental and physical health, employment or steady income, education, criminal justice, continuing education and creating a network of support. The resident may also identify unique needs such as re-unification efforts with her children or handling financial issues such as bad credit or debt.

Step 2, An Individual Recovery Plan: Also with the support of the Program Manager, each resident creates an Individual Recovery Plan that addresses how she will meet the six objectives (long-term recovery, stable housing, stable income, crime-free living, higher education and healthcare), and her unique personal goals.

Step 3, Weekly Mentoring/Case Management: To support the resident in her Individual Recovery Plan, the Program Manager meets with each resident every week for recovery mentoring and case management. She connects residents with GED classes at 5 Keys Charter School, community colleges, paid internship programs, employment networking, primary medical care and mental health agencies and helps them identify and apply for permanent housing. She coaches the residents to practice the principles of Restorative Justice, which includes taking responsibility for their actions, working to repair damage done in the past, and moving forward in a positive way.

Step 4, Participating in a Positive Peer Recovery Community: Each resident contributes to Gracenter’s recovery community by: taking a leadership role at the weekly on-site AA meetings, obtaining an AA sponsor, coming together for daily evening meal times, taking turns to cook on Sundays and attending monthly in-house classes on financial literacy.
Gracenter’s approach is both comprehensive and preventative, helping each woman with the support she needs to live a healthy, meaningful and self-sufficient life.

Leadership and Staffing
The program staff includes: Executive Director Sr. Marguerite Bartling, RGS, MSW, and Certified Addiction Treatment Counselor (CATC IV); Program Manager Sandra Munoz, Registered Addiction Specialist II, Clinical Supervisor, Forensic Addiction Counselor and CATC; House Manager, Traci Grellinger, Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor – II, and Internationally Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor, and three Resident Assistants who are registered students pursuing Alcohol and Other Drugs (AOD) counselor certification with the California Association for Drug/Alcohol Educators.

Community Partnerships
To holistically and effectively serve the needs of each woman, Gracenter partners with 11 government, 1 for-profit and 28 non-profit organizations. Upon enrollment, each woman is assisted in the process of enrolling in healthcare and referred to other partners as needed including the S.F. Consumer Credit Counseling Center, the Clean City Coalition Work-Paid Internship Program and the University of California San Francisco Workforce Development program.

For women who have not completed high school, Gracenter regularly collaborates with 5 Keys Charter (GED) School. If a woman has graduated from high school, she is encouraged to enroll in college or take a certificate program to further her education.
Gracenter also regularly collaborates with many shelters and addiction centers to receive referrals and helps place women in stable housing through relationships with the Department of Public Health, Tenderloin Housing and John Stewart Properties, as well as other agencies on a case-by-case basis.

Ongoing Support and Referrals
In addition to the services provided to each resident, Gracenter continues to support women after they complete the program to ensure their long-term success. This support consists of providing ongoing one-to-one mentoring, additional referrals including those for housing needs, and engaging with them at Gracenter's events throughout the year.

Outcomes
Based on 5-year averages, women who enter Gracenter's recovery program have the following needs:
Sobriety: 0% are achieving long-term recovery from drug and alcohol addiction
Housing: 0% have stable housing
Income: 25% have stable income
Crime-free lifestyle: 50% are involved in the criminal justice system
Education: 3% are enrolled in higher education
Healthcare: 75% have healthcare
Volunteerism: 5% are volunteering in the community

Gracenter carefully measures outcomes at program exit as well as 6 months, 1, 2 and 3 years after program completion. The results are overwhelmingly positive as demonstrated by these client outcomes, updated in December 2017:

6 months after leaving Gracenter:
93% are in recovery
94% are in stable housing
97% have stable income
99% lead a crime-free lifestyle
92% have healthcare
35% have furthered their education
59% volunteer
Sample size n=86

1 year after leaving Gracenter:
96% are in recovery
99% are in stable housing
97% have stable income
99% lead a crime-free lifestyle
97% have healthcare
35% have furthered their education
68% volunteer
Sample size n=71

2 years after leaving Gracenter:
98% are in recovery
98% are in stable housing
100% have stable income
98% lead a crime-free lifestyle
98% have healthcare
31% have furthered their education
65% volunteer
Sample size n=49

3 years after leaving Gracenter:
93% are in recovery
95% are in stable housing
95% have stable income
95% lead a crime-free lifestyle
95% have healthcare
35% have furthered their education
70% volunteer
Sample size n=43

Client Story
"When I came to Gracenter, I was having great difficulty staying sober. My life had become incredibly small. I remember the day I interviewed for admittance. The ‘Gracettes’ stood outside the door of the room I was in and cheered me on, asking if I was going to become one of them. Although the prospect of leaving the outside world and going into a program was scary, the bright faces peering through the small glass window wanting me to join made me feel great hope. Hope was not something I had experienced in a while and it was something that I was to learn a great deal about during my time at Gracenter.

Gracenter taught me about myself and my role and responsibility in my community. I learned how to work through problems and challenges. I also learned how to be still, to not have to react and how to be patient and wait for more information so I could make informed decisions. I learned how to build relationships with women and how to be a better friend, employee and relative. I learned about my feelings, the ones that kept me in my addiction and the ones that would drive me back to it if I did not make changes. All of these tools, the safe environment and the caring support of the Sisters, staff and fellow Gracettes gave me an opportunity that, had I not been fortunate enough to find, I might not still be alive and sober today.”

- Shauna, former Gracenter resident