INDIANAPOLIS — Inside the Theodora House on North Pennsylvania Street in Indianapolis work is being done to give mothers a second chance at life and being a mom again.
Staff greets you as you walk into the facility, but through a few locked doors there's still more to this facility.
It holds a dorm of rooms, designed for women undergoing drug treatment. But the women here aren't just regular women going through drug treatment, many of them are moms or soon to be moms.
"It's been beneficial. It's helped me stay clean," resident, Amber Pickerell said.
Volunteers of America is offering a unique opportunity for women in Indianapolis to get back on their feet without losing their kids to the system.
The Fresh Start Recovery Program is run by Volunteers of America, and the name says it all. The program is meant to give moms a fresh start on life. Their children can stay with them while they go through the intense drug treatment program, instead of separating them during one of their most trying times.
"It gives them peace of mind that they can focus on their recovery and not have to worry about their children," staff member, Carmen Glenn said.
The program offers weekly classes that show the women what they'll need when they go back into the world, which can be seen as full of temptation.
It also give them a support system, surrounding the women with other users working to be clean.
Inside the facility they even offer a weekly workout class.
The class, ran by 148 Ministries, teaches women the basic fundamentals to working out so they can stay healthy in whatever setting they are in.
"A lot of times they are marginalized by society and ostracized even. We come in here without judgment or condemnation," Pastor David Strovick said.
Laughter from the class can be heard from down the hall. It's an opportunity for the women to take some stress off.
"Sobriety can be fun," Pickerell said.
Pickerell has been working through sobriety for two weeks. Her drug of choice was meth.
She said she knew she needed help when her son nearly caught her with a needle in her arm.
Pickerell said she decided to get involved with the Fresh Start program because she wanted to keep her kids while working through sobriety.
"That's the main reason why I am here. I get my 6-month-old back in two weeks. This place has saved my life," she said.
Volunteers of America say the program comes at a much needed time.
They say last fall the state's maternal mortality annual report was released. It showed a 40% increase in maternal deaths from 2019 to 2020. The main reason, SUD or Substance Use Disorder.
To lean more about the fresh start program, click here.
