Leaders with the Raleigh-based recovery nonprofit say new apartments being built on its women's campus will help fill a critical housing gap for women who have already spent about a year working through addiction recovery.
The project aims to give them a stable place to continue rebuilding their lives.
"I almost lost everything. I had absolutely hit rock bottom," said Joy Reybein.
Raybein said her struggle with addiction began after she was prescribed pain medication for a back injury. She eventually sought help at Healing Transitions in 2022.
"I found recovery in these walls," Reybein said. "The people I went through the program with became my family very quickly."
Now four years into recovery, Reybein works as a staff accountant at Healing Transitions.
She walked ABC11 through the halls of the 12 to 18-month treatment facility she once entered as a client. Her journey, she says, makes the need for long-term housing options for women in recovery clear.
On Thursday, Healing Transitions leaders broke ground on a $14 million recovery-oriented housing facility designed for women and their children at the organization's women's campus.
Plans call for a three-story, 30,000-square-foot building with 16 apartments, community rooms, and mentoring spaces. The facility will include 42 bedrooms.
Executive Director Chris Budnick said the project will have a ripple effect beyond the women who live there.
"What does it mean for a child to have a mother that's stable, available, and present in their life?" Budnick said. "That's one way to think about what kind of impact it will have."
Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell said she has seen firsthand how difficult the transition can be for people trying to rebuild their lives after incarceration and addiction.
"I did open up my home to two women coming out of jail in 2020," Cowell said. "I saw how challenging it is, walking that journey with someone."
This year marks 25 years of Healing Transitions serving men and women across North Carolina.
In that time, the organization has helped thousands of people work toward recovery, including some who now work at the facility themselves.
"It surrounded me with people who believed recovery was possible, even if I didn't believe it myself," said Tracy Freeman-Hines, another Healing Transitions alumnus.
Reybein said recovery has allowed her to rebuild relationships with her family.
"I have a life with my children today," she said. "I have grandchildren I am present for."
Construction on the new housing facility is expected to take about 12 months. Healing Transitions leaders say they hope to open the apartments next year.
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