BANGOR, Maine — Two new sober living houses are open in Greater Bangor, bringing local nonprofit Fresh Start Sober Living's total to 17 recovery residences with more than 150 beds between them.
One of those beds now belongs to Jeremy Wilson, one of the first residents of the new sober living houses.
"When I got here, they cooked me a meal. They didn't have to. They did it out of their own pocket. They helped me set up my TV and my computers. I got a whole room to myself. It's just been a life-saving thing to me," Wilson said.
Scott Pardy, president of Fresh Start, has been in recovery for 15 years and personally understands what it's like to try and get sober with nothing.
"If you're starting out and you're trying to get clean, it's real important," he said. "This is the base of the pyramid, having a place to live."
Even with the addition of the two new sober living houses, though, he said it still isn't enough.
"I'd say we get an average of 15 to 20 applications a week. We're always full. If we're not full, it's because we're redoing a room or construction," Pardy explained.
But that doesn't stop Pardy and Fresh Start from trying to keep up with the demand. He said they hope to even expand their sober living housing to places in Piscataquis County, like Milo and Dover-Foxcroft, which currently have no recovery residences.
Other recovery organizations like the Bangor Area Recovery Network, or BARN, have been working with Fresh Start for years to help those recovering and have witnessed firsthand how much of an impact sober living homes can have.
"It's important for people that are struggling with substance abuse and alcohol abuse to have a nice place to go that's safe and is going to help them with their recovery," BARN Justice Recovery Coach Madison Valle said.
And for people in recovery like Wilson, it's something he couldn't imagine life without now.
"If Fresh Start wasn't here, I would've been on the street, I probably would've been in a tent and I probably wouldn't have anything and that's the truth," Wilson said.
Fresh Start says they're now looking for items to furnish the two new sober living houses with. If you're interested in helping you can take a look at their Amazon wish list to find out what's still needed.