Detox center marks 30 years of helping people turn the corner in their lives

Detox center marks 30 years of helping people turn the corner in their lives

(Laura Seitz, Deseret News)


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SALT LAKE CITY — Not long after Volunteers of America-Utah opened its detoxification center 30 years ago, Charlie T became one of its first clients.

"A lot of people drank down at Pioneer Park, and I was part of that gang. As soon as VOA opened, not long after, the police department saw the resource and they would go gather us up in the park and bring us here. And they did that for me over and over and over and over again," he said.

Then, as now, it was a safe place for people to detox from drugs and alcohol, and figure out the next steps in their lives.

"I could not fathom why they wanted me to be here because I know this was for people who wanted to be sober, and I was not on that list," Charlie T said. "So it was bothersome to put me in here. I thought, 'Why don't you just leave me alone?'"

Still, the detox center doors were open to him. He stayed there 10 to 15 times over the years until he got serious about recovery.

Charlie T had his last drink on Dec. 3, 1988, his last "funny cigarette" eight days later. He is now a licensed substance use disorder counselor who describes himself as "a man in long-term recovery."

(In observance of the principles of his recovery movement, which places principles above personalities, Charlie T would not provide his full name or consent to being photographed for this story.)

Volunteers of America, which provides detox services for up to 14 days, is not a treatment center. But for Charlie T and thousands of other people over the years, it is a place where people detox and get clean before entering substance abuse treatment or making other changes in their lives, he said.

Clients watch TV in the group room at Volunteers of America-Utah Detox in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016. Photo: Ravell Call, Deseret News
Clients watch TV in the group room at Volunteers of America-Utah Detox in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016. Photo: Ravell Call, Deseret News

The facility, which is observing its 30th anniversary of operation this week, has 37 employees and an operating budget of $2.2 milion.

At its start in 1986, the detox center was Volunteers of America's sole facility and program. Then, the nonprofit organization had an operating budget of just $750,000.

It now provides a wide array of services to people experiencing homelessness, including emergency shelter for youths, supportive housing programs for young men and women, and behavioral health programs. Its annual budget now exceeds $10 million.

But it started in a humble building at 252 Brooklyn Ave. providing social detox services to people brought there by police or from hospital emergency rooms. The building was substantially renovated in 2013, but has not moved from its original location, says Volunteers of America-Utah President and CEO Kathy Bray.

It can be difficult work, but the staff loves it — some of them recent college graduates and others in personal recovery who want to work in the field, Bray said.

"It's a tough job because you're really seeing people at their sickest. They can be agitated and irritated and don't feel good. Our staff, they do a great job of continuing to treat people nicely, with respect. They turn the corner after some point and start to interact with the staff in a positive, cooperative kind of manner," she said.

It is also a rewarding job because "you do see people physically change before your eyes," Bray said.

When people enter detox, many are dehydrated, haven't eaten in days and appear disheveled.

Mattresses are placed on the floor in the dorm at the Volunteers of America-Utah Detox in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016. Photo: Ravell Call, Deseret News
Mattresses are placed on the floor in the dorm at the Volunteers of America-Utah Detox in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2016. Photo: Ravell Call, Deseret News

"So after a few days of sleeping, hydration, eating and supervised safety, you start to see the person who they really are. That's kind of the miracle of the work. We get to watch people in that transformation," Bray said.

Charlie T said when he visits the detox center on a professional basis, his interactions with clients make him reflect on his own recovery.

"You walk in and you see yourself," he said.

Over the years, thousands of people have walked through their doors, some of them brought there by police, some persuaded to detox by Volunteers of America outreach workers, and still others who knock on its doors seeking help.

"If someone relapses in treatment, they can come to detox and go right back into treatment," Bray said.

The center, which is largely funded by government sources, has an established role in the community as partner to law enforcement, the jail, homeless services providers, health care providers and clients themselves, she said.

As the organization contemplates it 30th anniversary, Volunteers of America-Utah hopes to double Salt Lake County's detox capacity, Bray said. It presently serves about 1,500 people a year.

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Reopening its detox and rehabilitation center for women and women with children in Murray is a high priority, she said. The center operated for about 15 years but closed about two years ago when Volunteers of America lost government funding for the program.

The program could be revived under Salt Lake County's Homeless Services System Reform Plan.

"We're filling a niche that's really needed. So we've made the commitment to continue to provide that service in Salt Lake County," Bray said.

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