Statements
Mission
Healing Housing is a nonprofit residential recovery program based in Davidson County serving women with limited resources who are healing from substance use disorder. We provide a stable home and extensive support services, rooted in love, acceptance and the power of community, to women transitioning from jail or drug and alcohol treatment.
We seek to provide women the tools, structure, and loving environment in which they can remain sober, find mental health and financial stability, and develop their own spiritual path.
We presently offer a comprehensive residential recovery program with three homes serving a total of 25 women. We also serve as a referral resource for families and individuals seeking recovery support as well as provide educational outreach to our greater community.
Women coming to HH must complete a drug treatment program prior to admission, have 30 days of sobriety, be without financial resources and willing to commit to 12-month stay. Residents arrive extremely vulnerable-newly sober, but without jobs or financial skills, in poor physical health, and with undiagnosed psychiatric conditions. Most have experienced abuse or trauma in childhood, and their addiction has damaged family relationships - including loss of custody of their children.
HH takes a whole-person approach to help each woman meet her goals, including case management, individual and group therapy, medical management, psychological evaluation and follow-up, a female-specific Intensive Outpatient Program, medical and dental care, plus career training. This holistic treatment model is rare for marginalized women in our community.
On July 1 2024 , HH will be begin offering a female specific Intensive Outpatient Program based in Franklin, TN that will be open to the public free of charge.
HH serves women of all ethnicities and orientations. Referral partners include The Next Door, 21st District Recovery Court, Buffalo Valley, and Mirror Lake.
Background
In 2015, founder Olivia Smith became aware of a growing crisis in the Nashville area: the lack of housing and supportive services for women in substance abuse recovery who have little financial means. Whether coming from prison, through drug court, or an addiction program, women completing drug treatment had few options for affordable and safe housing.
After diligent research and conversations with experts in the recovery community, Olivia and a team of aligned volunteers decided to begin a recovery residential program to provide women the security and support they needed to grow in sobriety.
Choosing to locate in Williamson County, Tennessee, which had no affordable options for women in recovery, a strategic plan was drafted, the Board of Directors was assembled, and the search for a house began.
In January of 2017, Olivia found two houses located next door to each other available for lease. With the help of the Cal Turner Family Foundation, the Brentwood United Methodist Church Foundation, and individual donors, Healing Housing opened as the county's first and only nonprofit recovery residential facility for women.
Impact
Since launching in 2017, HH has served more than 500 women, housed more than 200, and celebrated more than 75 graduations from our program. Over 80% of women have remained sober while at HH. By the end of their stay, 100% of graduates have completed IOP and are employed. All residents report significant decreases in anxiety, PTSD, depression, and increased overall emotional, spiritual, dental, and physical wellness. By the time they leave, 75% of women have started the process of regaining custody of their children and restoring damaged family relationships. A built-in HH program gifts back 60% of a resident's fees to them upon their graduation.
In 2023, HH provided 59 women with comprehensive services such as medical and dental care, case management, therapy, safe and stable housing, recovery programming. 18 women graduated the 6-12 month program, with over $30K being gifted back to them upon graduation. We received over 154 new applications from women wanting to enter HH, and provided referrals and advocacy to approximately 280 women. 13 women stayed with us over 300 days.
We provided 285 therapeutic sessions and 158 psychiatric visits to women. 21 residents completed our gender-specific, in-house intensive outpatient program. 10 residents graduated from the UpRise Nashville vocational training program and started jobs with employers such as Optum, JourneyPure, Integrative Life Center, Vanderbilt, St. Thomas, Williamson Medical, and WorldPac. 29 graduates participated in HH alumni services, with 15 receiving continuing therapeutic care.
Other updates for 2023 include a focus on utilizing resources our community provides. With partners like The Giving Garden, OneGen Away, Graceworks and The Body and Soul Pantry, a lead volunteer streamlined food donations and helped residents utilize these in menu planning.
We also added program enrichment activities for women led by a new volunteer coordinator. Participants met for walks, yoga, mindfulness and local hikes. Local artisans taught embroidery, jewelry- making, and more to inspire creativity.
Our staff engaged with social workers working in jails across Tennessee to educate them about Healing Housing, providing an alternative for women incarcerated for drug-related crimes.
Our overall goal is to provide a program that is rich in recovery resources and that fosters a loving, supportive community essential to healing from substance use disorder. Specific annual goals include:
32 women will receive a supportive place of residence while working on their individualized treatment plan.
29 of 32 women will complete 30 days of the program, an important milestone in sobriety.
29 of 32 women will complete our Intensive Outpatient Program.
20 of 32 women will graduate the program.
15 will receive vocational training at the UpRise Nashville career development program.
29 women will choose to stay one full year at HH.
100% of graduates will maintain sobriety, find stable employment, and have gained a work history with marketable skills.
100% of graduates will have a savings account with a minimum of $1550, create a budget, and receive coaching in debt reduction.
Needs
A few of the areas where we are seeking support include legal advice for residents (as needed for specific questions), employment partnerships, dental assistance, corporate sponsorships, and donated cars for residents and graduates. Although we have one step-down house how available for 7 graduates, affordable and safe options in Nashville are always needed due to the ongoing challenge of the high costs of rentals in the Nashville area.
CEO Statement
Since we opened our doors in March of 2017, our leadership team, board, volunteers and partners, have welcomed vulnerable residents with open arms. We have watched lives change before our eyes. What started as a dream to provide safe and affordable housing to women seeking recovery has evolved into a program with full wrap-around services that provide a supportive, immersive recovery community.
Through our built-in savings program, residents are able to purchase their own cars, and build nest eggs to help them start fresh when they graduate our program. As the women of HH heal, they leave the court system, contribute to the local workforce and economy, and change the lives of their children, families and community.
Being able to walk alongside and cheer on a woman as she changes her life is a gift to all who have been a part of the journey. We believe each woman is deserving of grace and a new beginning. The need is great, and we stand ready and excited to see what the next phase of this journey will take us.
Board Chair Statement
Since its inception, Healing Housing has grown and expanded in terms of its collaborative impact partners, community awareness, recovery partners, and services offered to the many women who have graced our doorsteps. I'm proud of the life-changing work the HH team does providing a stable, loving home, trauma therapy, vocational training and psychiatric care. We look forward to serving many more women in the years ahead.
Service Categories |
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| Primary Category: | Housing, Shelter - Temporary Housing |
| Secondary Category: | Human Services - Personal Social Services |
| Tertiary Category: | - |
Areas Served
We accept women from across TN (with a particular interest in the Williamson/Davidson areas) as well as referrals from other parts of the U.S.
| TN - Rutherford |
| TN - Hickman |
| TN - Houston |
| TN - Williamson |
| TN - Davidson |
