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Recovery in the News
Hooked on Art, Hooked on Recovery
Molly Woulfe
NWI Times
November 14, 2010
Their art studio is a leased office in a Chesterton industrial park. Their easels, conference tables draped in white plastic sheets.
As for supplies, these raw talents rely on the blank sides of cardboard signs salvaged from Dumpsters. Hardware store bargain bins yield $1 cans of paint.
Frontline Foundations' Art Recovery Program has elevated dollar-stretching to high art. A nonprofit service, Frontline is Porter County's only faith-based, substance abuse treatment program for 18- to 28-year-olds.
"I'm 20 months clean," said painter-sculptor Ryan A., 28. "It's crazy. I have my own place. I have vehicles. I'm a subcontractor carpenter, working for myself.
The recovering heroin addict -- who bounced in and out of detox before completing Frontline's 12-week program -- headed for a metal-and-wood sculpture, his tribute to his 8-year-old daughter.
A known graffiti artist, "they're trying to keep me away from the spray paint," joked Ryan, of Valparaiso, who asked that his last name be withheld.
The brainchild of Frontline founder Amber Hensell, Art Recovery is light years from a hip gallery scene. But the half-dozen artistes who meet Tuesdays at the central office, 802 Wabash Ave., aren't there for glam.
Clay, charcoal and paint are tools that help redefine their boundaries, filling in the blanks of their drug-free lives. "Sometimes they put things in art form they can't express," Hensell said.
In a way, the act of creation is a positive self-meditation. "It gives them values," she said.
You name it, these clean-cut, local kids in hoodies and jeans have chugged it, shot it up or snorted it. Most have served time -- for possession, dealing, driving under the influence or stealing -- to finance their habits.
Three-quarters of the program's clients are male, Hensell said. Ninety percent were referred by the courts. "Our average relapse rate is about 33 percent (while) the national rate for opiate relapse is 70 to 90 percent," she said.
Modeled on the Hazelden Foundation's multidisciplinary approach, Frontline is an outgrowth of a pilot program launched in Valparaiso in 2007 to combat above-average rates of local drug use.
The Porter County Drug Task Force reported 22 fatal overdoses in 2009 and more than 230 ambulance requests due to potential overdoses. The highest rate of binge drinking, cocaine and prescription drug abuse is among 18- to 25-year-olds.
Art Recovery is free and open to graduates of the outpatient program. Attendance varies between six to a dozen young artists a week.
Like most of its programs, Frontline -- certified by the Indiana Divison of Mental Health and Addiction -- tailors Art Recovery to young adults. Evidence suggests that older teens and 20-somethings respond best to treatment and education efforts exclusive to their age bracket.
Erica Donohue, 20, likes the relaxed camaraderie of the unlikely artists' colony. "It's like a family here," she said.
Raised by a "good guy" widowed father, Donohue began mixing "with the wrong kids" and smoking weed at 15. At 17, she miraculously survived an alcohol-fueled car crash. By 18, she was snorting an eighth of an ounce of cocaine mixed with Xanax, an anti-anxiety drug, a day.
"It generally made me feel like I had no problems," said Donohue, a pretty brunette with twin dimples. "It put me in instant nirvana. Perfect."
Then she was arrested for shoplifting. A 10-day stint in jail and year's probation followed. After a bender, Donohue cleaned up her act, enrolled in Frontline and has been drug-free for 11 months. She currently is working on earning her GED.
Today she is a fixture at the art classes. Poem-paintings studded with broken glass are her specialty. "Just sitting there and being able to write it out helps me," said Donohue, a cashier at a fast-food restaurant.
Unlike art therapy, where licensed specialists supervise patients, Art Recovery is loose-knit. Self-taught painter Bart Powers and veteran art teacher Jack Rowe, of Willowcreek Middle School in Portage, oversee the weekly art jams.
Powers urges students to trust their intuition while Rowe, who has two fine arts degrees, offers technical advice on color, composition, and perspective.
Both are staunch believers in the power of art to transform lives. "The best way to kick a bad habit is to replace it with a good habit," Powers said.
"The kids who stick it out get excited about it," Rowe said. "It's a way of getting the inside (turmoil) out."
While their students munch and work -- Powers frequently springs for hot dogs and fries -- clinical social worker Allen Grecula leads casual discussions that link artwork to life issues. One recent topic was motivation "and how to stay motivated in our recovery," Grecula said.
He and Hensell conceived the art program after observing that many of their clients exhibit creative streaks. "This is an outlet," Grecula said.
Frontline, subsidized by grants, operates on a shoestring budget of $125,000 a year, which near covers services plus rent, utilities and the salaries of three full-time staffers. Local churches and a KFC restaurant kick in food for group meals.
The big fundraiser: an annual art sale starring Frontline grads' paintings, drawings, and sculptures. The next "salon" is scheduled for April 19. "I've sold every piece I've done," Donohue said.