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Founded in 1970, the Beacon House Association of San Pedro opens the Millennium with a record of having helped some 3,500 men who have sought help here for substance abuse and its related issues of homelessness, malnourishment, physical, emotional and spiritual ills. During these 40 years, we have achieved a national reputation for program effectiveness at low cost with a notably high success rate of 70 percent long-term sobriety among residents who graduate our Primary Program and remain 12 to 18 months longer in one of our sober living center houses.
Ours was the first social model residential recovery program in Los Angeles County to adopt a policy (1986) for admitting men who are HIV-positive. Likewise, we were among pioneer agencies in accepting the duality-diagnosed, those suffering from a treatable mental illness in addition to alcoholism/addiction. There is no discrimination due to race, age or other factors and no one is ever turned away for lack of funds. If a man is willing, we will find a way to see that he receives the treatment be needs. And, Beacon House is also singularly unique in not setting a time limit of 30, 90 or 120 days to get ready to return to independent life outside. We allow them time to achieve what they need to in order to go back to the world capable of coping with it. We encourage them to return to college or vocational rehabilitation in order to anticipate the type of job that will bring a decent salary, personal satisfaction and economic security, all of which are keys to continuing sobriety. Fully one-third do go on to finish school and recent grads have begun careers as diesel mechanics, computer repair personnel and one just opened his own law practice.
Our Primary Program is long term and includes 42 men, while we are equipped with 105 beds including Beacon House and our six other residential structures all within a one-block enclave around 10th and Beacon streets in Old Town San Pedro. Inclusion of more men and increasing the length of stay, has improved the depth and scope of this experience. A longer primary stay does not shorten their optional stay in Sober Living housing. Indeed, we have found little change in the rate of men moving on from Primary Program to independent living as a result of the extension. Some still go home after completion of the primary program, especially where family support is a consideration. Others may stay as long as five or six years and this is allowed, all things being equal concerning their conscientious pursuit of a personal recovery program. This occurs most often when a man is enrolled in the California State University system, perhaps even going for an advanced degree.
The Beacon House Primary Program is thorough and highly regimented. Men are not allowed to work during their Primary stay, other than occasional day labor or assisting with our weekend car washes. Recovery and sobriety are their chief occupations. Not all of it is book learning or theory. One tenet of our program is community service, which both teaches us giving when for years in the grip of alcoholism and drug addiction we were takers and shirkers where society and responsibility are concerned. Volunteer work among the less-fortunate can also take us “out of ourselves” in terms of comparing lifestyles and blessings we enjoy with the way others live and look to the future During an average year, the men of Beacon House compile more than 20,000 hours of such volunteer work. Some are on our own resident volunteer staff and help keep Beacon House running, from office management to food service, transportation, maintenance and mechanics as well as fundraising and conducting our vigorous and relatively new youth outreach program for at-risk children in the entire South Bay region. Three residents have formed “The Beacon Boyz,” a clean-and-sober rap group in real demand for personal appearances with their original lyrics about alcohol, drugs and tobacco. Over nine months, the Beacon Boyz have made more than than 30 appearances at schools, community fairs or celebrations; the South Bay World AIDS Day, and our April Youth Outreach Festival.
The Beacon House Primary Program day typically starts with breakfast; the morning walk and daily chores followed by Morning Peer Group (individual counseling is available too); alcohol and drug education; Parenting Class; anger management; Principles of Sobriety (A. A. Big Book Study); Resident Council; educational and vocational counseling and five or more weekly 12-Step Program such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous. We also offer other emphases in 12-Step work including Cocaine Anonymous and Sex Addicts Anonymous, plus Al-Anon. We also have so-called Double-Trudger meetings. These are designed for the dually diagnosed, who must deal with a treatable psychiatric problem such as clinical depression; manic-depression; milder forms of schizophrenia and other afflictions.
Once graduated from Primary, Residents move from our Primary Housing facilities to Sober Living housing. Many who do return to outside living or family life remain strongly active in our Beacon House Alumni Association. Sober Living men may be looked up-to in a sense, but we all share a principal reason for being here and there are no “upper classmen.” In fact, our entire volunteer staff and four paid staff are in recovery, if not graduates of Beacon House ourselves. Sober Living does entail a more flexible and relaxed schedule.
We find this poses a problem only rarely considering the preparation and the degree of peer supervision and counseling that occurs when 105 men are living in close proximity in a one-block square area and living two or three men to a room. Participants pledge at the outset to abide by various rules and regulations. They are restricted to the grounds the first two weeks, requiring escorts to leave the grounds for any reason. The cardinal rule for all is abstinence from alcohol and drugs. We are not a halfway house for the prison system. We do, however,. accept referrals from many sources including hospitals, jails, prisons, social workers, probation officers, DPSS and child welfare agencies. Beacon House also takes walk-ins and self-referrals.
Virtually at any time of year, we have a waiting list. Beacon House has been able to provide room for guests who stay from two to 10 or even 14 days until a bed is open elsewhere at a larger, shorter program such as the county’s Warm Springs or Acton rehabilitation centers. They participate each day just as an accepted resident, taking place on our waiting list and going elsewhere until a bed vacancy occurs so they can enter Bacon House. We have formed many linkages and cooperative efforts within the Long Beach and South Bay community service areas enabling us to fund services to these guests including food, shelter and medical and vision or dental care Particularly helpful have been Beach Cities Health District; AIDS Walk of Greater Long Beach; the Koalas; the Sandpipers; Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Long Beach, and VA Medical Center, Westwood.
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