Two new homes will help those fighting addiction
Oxford house names facilities after founders, former social services minister
Darcy Friesen struggled with drug and alcohol addiction for 20 years.
Jail used to be the only place he felt safe — the only place where he could stay clean, call his family and make future plans.
That was until he found Oxford House, a transitional house for people recovering from addictions.
“Without Oxford House I may have been in an alley, using a dirty needle, struggling with suicidal thoughts and living on the street,” said an emotional Friesen in a speech Tuesday.
Friesen was asked to speak about his experiences at the grand opening of two new Oxford House Society of Regina (OHSR) homes. The homes will provide support for 10 individuals and were made possible through a partnership between OHSR and the provincial and federal governments.
“I feel like this is not just celebrating the opening of our two most recent homes, but it’s really a celebration of sobriety, of support, safety, sensibility and all of the other good things that come for those who are residents of an Oxford house,” said Brian Larratt, pastor and chair on the board of directors for OHSR.
Larratt spoke briefly at the event to recognize Rebecca and Jim Richards and June Draude, after whom the two new homes are named. Richards Place honours Jim and Rebecca who, after their own struggles with addiction in Calgary, helped found the OHSR in 2009. June House honours Draude, a former Saskatchewan minister of social services. Draude was also the minister responsible for housing when the OHSR was founded.
“Less than a week ago they phoned and asked me and I was so humbled. I’m really honoured,” said Draude. “I was the right person at the right time when it came to the opportunity of somebody doing the right thing in government. I was taken by what they do, what their goal is and it’s the same as mine.”
Draude has worked a lot of different jobs in her lifetime, but she said being minister of social services was her favourite. She said as a society and as a government, they had the responsibility and the opportunity to change things for vulnerable people.
Currently, Draude works with the Autism Resource Centre on a program called Ready, Willing & Able. The program helps people with intellectual disabilities like autism find work. She contacts employers across Saskatchewan to find out if they are willing to hire people with invisible disabilities. She then contacts organizations like Oxford House to see if any of their residents are looking for work.
A plaque with a photo of Draude will hang in June House, which will be a women’s-only house.
“Probably the biggest honour, besides being a grandmother, that I’ve ever had was being the minister in charge of opportunities like this,” said Draude.
The current minister of social services, Tina Beaudry-Mellor, was also at the event. She thanked the OHSR for its work in Regina, sharing that someone in her own family struggled with addiction in the past, and while they were able to get help with the support of their family and friends, she was grateful to have the OHSR as a plan B.