Step Denver, a low-cost recovery program for men, has lowered its minimum entry age from 21 to 18.
The reason: Addiction starts far younger, with many Step clients starting to drink around 12 or 13.
“I've met many men who started much younger, including one member of our staff who blacked out for the first time at 5 years old with his uncles and his dad,” Step CEO Meghan Shay told Denverite. “And so these individuals have had years of their addiction building. It is a progressive disease as we all know, and by the time they come to us, they have had a lot of loss in their lives, a lot of suffering.”
The sooner that process starts, the better.
“We just felt a responsibility to help as many men as we possibly can,” she said. “And so we reduced the age to 18, so anyone who is ready and willing to enter recovery into our program and wants that help will be able to enter the same day, no cost to enter the moment that they're 18.”
Step’s outreach team finds potential clients at libraries, detox facilities and other places where people with addiction congregate. The program offers treatment for addiction to alcohol and other substances.
When men begin the program, they first stay in a group shelter. As their commitment to sobriety and work grows, they get private housing – and nicer housing. Participants leave with a plan for housing and a way to pay for it.
The organization has not accepted government grants since it was founded in 1983.
Step makes its decisions based on the needs of people it serves, not government funding requirements. And the organization’s stability is not based on the whims of politicians, Shay said.
Instead, the organization gets its funds from private philanthropies. While it’s free to enter Step Denver, once participants get a job, they do pay a small fee.
“That decision is one that has had a significant impact on the efficacy of our program,” Shay explained.
Step has a downtown Denver location at 2029 Larimer St. and another spot in Colorado Springs. For more information, go to the Step Denver website.
