Apr 9, 2012 | By Tim Stoddart

The Rewards of Opening a Halfway House

Aftercare and Sober Living

If you’ve thought about opening a halfway house, the odds are you have a good, caring soul. People who think about opening a halfway house have a desire to help others in need, and this is certainly a very noble pursuit. Opening a halfway house is no easy feat, and it requires a lot of time and effort, just as running any business or organization does. But running a successful halfway house has the unique potential to bring you great personal reward.

Halfway House Provides Service to Others

For an addict in recovery, community service and helping others is so important to maintaining their sobriety. Opening a halfway house is an incredible form of service. What better way to help other addicts than opening a halfway house and helping them with difficult transitions in their lives? You know better than anyone how challenging that can be, and you can support your residents better because you understand what they’re going through from personal experience.

Helping Your Community

Opening a halfway house requires so much planning and preparation, and potentially the most important aspect of opening a halfway house is the location. Zoning laws in your area could restrict its placement, but in most cases it can be done anywhere. If your town is small and lacks a variety of recovery resources, opening a halfway house will be an excellent way to help out your community. Everyone is affected by addiction, and halfway houses are in greater need than ever before. Opening a halfway house can provide local people with a place to stay in an area that would otherwise lack positive options to support their recovery. Sober Nation has personally worked with a San Diego Sober Living Home, and we know first hand that there are good people out there looking to help addicts and alcoholics recover.

Meaningful Relationships

One of the best rewards of opening a halfway house is the number of relationships you’ll develop over the years. You’ll meet so many different people, and you’ll affect each other in many different ways. In all likelihood, opening a halfway house will provide you with some of the best relationships you’ve ever had. You’ll meet interesting and diverse people and provide them with support. Many times those relationships don’t end when a resident moves away, as you’ll always have special connections to each other. In opening a halfway house you’ll also have to hire a staff, and oftentimes people who want to work in halfway houses will be just as caring and hardworking as you. When working in such an intense, emotional field as recovery service work, staff members often form a close, family-like bond. Opening a halfway house should also introduce you to many other great people related to the recovery and general life assistance you’ll be providing to your residents.

Financial Considerations

Although opening a halfway house has a ton of spiritual and emotional rewards, it will likely not be very financially rewarding. If you’re looking for a way to make a lot of money, opening a halfway house isn’t it. It can be possible to make a modest by running a halfway house. Though if you’re focused on making an impact in the lives of others above all else, the rewards will be plentiful.