Carolyn M. Marshall said that people believe the Lucille Raines Residence saved them from returning to a life of drugs and alcohol, but the truth of the matter is – it didn’t.
“The building didn’t do it. They were ready to be saved,” said Marshall who is executive director of the facility.
Lucille Raines Residence, formerly a hotel, is a residential facility for those who have completed a substance abuse program. For $100 per week, men and women recovering from substance abuse can have a safe, clean environment while continuing on their path to sobriety.
The United Methodist Women operates the facility.
Residents and employees say what makes Lucille Raines Residence special is that it is a place of community, camaraderie and most importantly a support network for those who want to get their lives back on track.
“There’s always someone around you can talk to, someone who’s experienced the same thing you have. You can talk it out rather than pick up a drink or shoot up,” said Marshall.
Here are the stories of four residents of the Lucille Raines Residence who have shared their experiences of being introduced to drugs and alcohol, their reasons for getting sober and how the Lucille Raines Residence is aiding in that recovery.
The mother
Mariea Strader used drugs for over 30 years before turning her life around.
Wanting to fit in with her older siblings, Strader began getting drunk and smoking marijuana at age 11.
“It was the fast lifestyle, you know, hanging out with older people, going to the night clubs,” said Strader.
Her casual use of marijuana transitioned into using crack and cocaine. She even used drugs and alcohol while pregnant with her daughter.
In her home, where her children would be nearby, she would allow drug dealers to deal drugs; addicts to use drugs; and her friends to prostitute. She received free drugs because of her hospitality.
“By then it wasn’t about the fast life – it was about me getting high. I lived a double life. I stayed home with my kids, I went to church on Sundays – I even worked at a school. But I did drugs too,” said Strader.
Eventually her children were taken and placed in a foster home. Strader said that although she was upset, having her children in a safe environment was the best thing for her. Her desire to get clean and stay clean was fueled by reconnecting with her children and making a better life for them.
She requested and completed in-patient drug treatment, and to further ensure sobriety, Strader moved to the Lucille Raines Residence.
“I was able to go to my meetings, obtain a sponsor and work the steps. We have a lot of addicts and alcoholics so I had someone to talk to when the thought of using came across,” said Strader. “It gave me the stability I needed.”
Today, the 51-year-old has 12 years of sobriety. She went back to school for computer training and is now the program coordinator at Lucille Raines Residence.
“God gives you a new beginning to do what you need to do,” said Strader.
The dependent
Kurt Smith was raised in a middle class home with a family that drank socially.
“They got up and went to work in the morning,” said Smith. “I was the one who couldn’t be productive after drinking.”
He began drinking beer, and while attending Broad Ripple High School, then progressed to harder alcohol. He had planned to attend college but instead, began selling drugs; using marijuana, cocaine and crack; committing crimes and spending time in jail.
“I was really laid back and shy. The drinking would bring me out of that,” said Smith.
In addition to his self-destruction, Smith said he found enabling women to take care of him.
“I was married to my first wife and we had a home. I ran out of means to get drugs and alcohol. I had lost my key to the house so I broke into my own home to get merchandise to sell. When she found out what I did, she made me leave,” said Smith. “That’s when I recognized I had a problem.”
After attempting suicide, he was taken to a hospital and was introduced to a 12-step recovery program.
“I was 25 at the time so I couldn’t see myself not at least having a beer,” added Smith, who is now 40. “It’s been a struggle accepting that alcohol is a drug too. I wish I could drink socially, but I can’t – I have a disease.”
Since 1997, Smith has been in recovery off and on. This is his third time living at the Lucille Raines Residence. Although he’s lived there for two years, he is only 11 months sober.
“All my life, I’ve had caretakers. I made the decision to be a man and take care of myself. Lucille Raines is a good place to be with yourself and finish recovery,” said Smith. “I know I have a long way to go. I don’t want a pat on my back for being clean, because this is something I was supposed to be doing in the first place.”
The princess
Nicole Turner grew up with much more independence than she needed.
“I was so spoiled. I did what I wanted to do. I could be gone for three days at age 11. I’d come in and they’d say ‘Where you been? You hungry? Sit down and eat,’” said Turner.
She began having sex with older men and became pregnant at 16. By age 22 she had five children. To feed her spoiled nature, she sought out wealthy men.
Although she was a regular marijuana smoker, Turner looked down on her older sister who was a cocaine user.
“I had kids of my own, and I had to take her kids too because she would go missing. I said to myself ‘I would never do that stuff,’” said Turner. That feeling soon changed.
For her 19th birthday she asked a drug-dealing neighbor to supply her with marijuana. He asked if she wanted a “primo” or a cocaine-laced joint. She became hooked and eventually began sniffing cocaine.
“I never really felt anything so I did it over and over. Once I got high, I went on a long journey of trying to get that first high again,” said Turner. A friend later introduced her to crack.
“I realized I was in trouble when I went downtown to pick up my food stamps and didn’t come back until the next morning,” said Turner. “We didn’t have any food and all the stamps were gone.”
Due to her drug use, her children were taken away and placed in foster care. Her drug use became worse due to her lack of responsibility.
She was then forced to either give her children up for adoption or seek help. She made valiant attempts to get her children back and recover, but would relapse from time to time.
“The first time I came to Lucille Raines I took this place for granted. I ran out of here and got my own place. I thought I was OK,” said Turner. She had also met a recovering addict of 12 years and “thought his recovery would rub off” on her.
Last year, she became engaged and discontinued her meetings. Her brother died two weeks before her wedding and her fiancé got cold feet. She began using once again.
She realized that she was back into her unhealthy life and returned to Lucille Raines Residence.
Although she and her fiancé still own a home, the 42-year-old finds help and solace in the facility. She has lived at Lucille Raines for two months and is six months clean.
“This place is awesome. This is a place of new beginnings and how to live with yourself,” said Turner. “I can’t be a good wife or mother unless I address this problem…me.”
The swapper
Delores Clark, 62, grew up during an era when drinking was common.
“I started drinking at seven or eight. At that time there were no babysitters. You took your kids with you and the kids would be in one bedroom while our parents drank and played cards,” said Clark. “We’d take turns going to the bathroom and the deal was, you had to come back with alcohol.”
Although she had to drop out of school to help her mother with bills (her father died of alcoholism), she continued to get drunk as a teen.
She got married at age 18 to a man who also became an alcoholic. Her drinking tapered off because she had to care for her drunk, belligerent husband.
During the Vietnam War era, Clark began smoking potent marijuana. She said she tried very hard to make her marriage work, but eventually her husband’s drinking and her drugs led to a divorce.
She then started a financially successful career in the construction industry and began dating again. At age 38, her new boyfriend enjoyed cocaine and crack and turned her on to the drugs. Due to the crack, she lost her construction job.
Clark went into a detoxification program at the Salvation Army, continued recovering at Lucille Raines Residence and was sober for 12 years. She said she then became bored, stopped going to meetings and found excitement in gambling.
She was lucky and oftentimes gave money away to friends and relatives. Clark stopped going on group casino trips and started driving herself to local casinos and horse tracks.
“I would go three or four times a week,” said Clark. She began losing more than winning and realized she had simply swapped her drug and alcohol use for gambling. Although she is 20 years free from drugs and alcohol, she returned to Lucille Raines Residence to continue recovering from her gambling.
For more information on the Lucille Raines Residence, call (317) 636-3328.
