GREENVILLE, N.C. (AP) - Once Lost Now Found always seemed to be a fitting name for the halfway house on Ninth Street. It was an apparent biblical reference to the prodigal son in the New Testament book of Luke who squandered his inheritance with reckless living before returning to his father.
But the name took on a somewhat different meaning this spring, when the home for women recovering from substance abuse closed its doors. Last week, the home got a second chance as three women moved in to begin taking steps toward rehabilitation.
Now known as God's Hope House 118, it will provide shelter for seven women who have been addicted, homeless or in prison. The house, which will continue a Christian-based recovery program similar to that of Once Lost Now Found, will be operated by volunteers from God's Love and Certain Hope ministries.
The two ministries -- one which provides furniture and clothing to the needy, the other an outreach to west Greenville -- had initially planned to collaborate on another project: a recovery home for men. Directors Trudy Halstead and Walter Strathy had begun efforts to purchase the Flynn Christian Fellowship Home, a 17-bed facility that was placed on the market last summer due to financial struggles, when the women's home came to their attention.
"When I learned in April that the woman that ran that house was going to give it up, I didn't want that to happen," said Emily Rouse, a long-term volunteer for Once Lost Now Found. "So I went to Walter and to Trudy and said, This is what's happening. What can we do?"'
By May they had taken steps to take over the lease on the Ninth Street property. Then, without hosting a fundraiser, naming a board of directors or even crafting a formal mission statement, the ministries began recruiting volunteers for the hasty renovation needed to get the house ready for its new residents on July 1.
"If we waited to get the money to open this house, what's going to happen to these girls that are struggling right now?" Halstead asked. "Where are they going to be? I just have to walk by faith and pray for God's provision because that's where it's all coming from anyway."
She asked God for someone to help spruce up the place to make it warm and inviting to its new residents. Greenville interior designer Jennifer Elmore was an answer to that prayer.
Elmore had kept Halstead's card in her desk drawer since donating some items to God's Love ministry at Christmas. Two months ago, Elmore had a mysterious yet overwhelming urge to call Halstead's number.
"I called her and I said, Trudy, do you need for me to help you with anything? For some reason, God's just telling me to call you,"' Elmore said. "She started crying. She said, We have been praying; we just got this house."'
Elmore and her husband provided the paint and they helped about 30 volunteers add color to the five-bedroom house. Hues of pink and purple, orange and blue, along with lace curtains and cozy quilts welcomed the first residents who moved in last week.
Among them is Kristy, who recently completed a stay at the Walter B. Jones Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment Center. It was the second time Kristy had completed the inpatient program. This time, she hopes the changes will be permanent.
At 23, Kristy has two DWIs. If she violates probation, she will spend a year in prison. Her father is incarcerated and has been diagnosed with cancer. Her grandmother, who raised Kristy, has recently gone to an assisted living facility. Kristy's mother has heart problems.
"I've been through a lot of stuff," Kristy said. "It's been one thing after another."
Just weeks before moving into God's Hope House, Kristy was involved in a car crash while riding with her mother. She feels blessed to have survived.
"I am a very religious person," Kristy said. "I've just made bad decisions. I've just finally decided that I have a purpose. I'm here for a reason."
Rena, 49, has come to God's Hope to complete the recovery she began more than a year ago.
A former drug addict, Rena has not had a relapse since April of last year, but she knows she is not ready to be on her own.
When her house mate began bringing alcohol into their home, Rena knew it could be a threat to her recovery.
She gathered her things and left.
"I want to move back home," she said Thursday as she unpacked her clothes in her room at God's Hope. "I want to get back to the point where I can go out without worrying about wanting drugs."
Rena has been at that point before. She was clean for five years until her boyfriend passed away. Now she is ready to try again.
"I'm not a failure until I quit trying," she said.
Experts say it may take many treatment experiences for an addict to obtain lifelong abstinence. The Scripps Research Institute estimates that 80 percent of addicts who get off drugs in detoxification go back to drugs within a year.
"Twenty-eight days is not enough," Halstead said. "They (detoxification programs) get them started. What happens when these kind of
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