His Sheltering Arms Review
His Sheltering Arms was founded in 1985 by Lillian Jeffries, a volunteer chaplain at a prison who saw a need for an organization dedicated to helping women and mothers recover from addiction. She started doing outreach in downtown Los Angeles—ministering to people on Skid Row. Jeffries then worked with the city and the recovery community, salvaged some apartment complexes, mortgaged her own home and opened His Sheltering Arms. Today, under the leadership of her daughter, Rhoen D. Morre, it’s a thriving organization offering residential treatment to women in various locations around LA.
Accommodations and Food
His Sheltering Arms has five buildings throughout Los Angeles County. One of them has four units, each with one bedroom. Another site is a house with extra apartments in the back. The main facility is a converted motel with a large meeting room and living quarters upstairs. Additionally, they have a 12-bed facility specifically for disabled women who are 55 and over—two residents per room. The other home-like setting accommodates up to four women and one child per room. Houses have one or two bathrooms between up to eight women and the main building’s bathrooms are shared by up to four residents. For entertainment, the main location has a big-screen TV—viewing is allowed during free time, which is after group therapy. No outside electronics are allowed on any of the premises, but all locations have telephones available for use. Phone use is restricted to evenings; calls are limited to 15 minutes.
In-house cooks prepare and serves meals such as jambalaya, gumbo and barbeque. For those with health restrictions or food allergies, special menus are available. Groceries are often donated by local businesses and other members of the community. Clients are given two healthy snacks between meals each day. Unless a resident’s health indicates otherwise, sugar and caffeine are allowed.
Treatment and Staff
The length of the program ranges from sis months to one year. Residents work the 12 steps along with participating in group therapy and at least one individual session per week. Dual diagnosis support and CBT are available—as well as EMDR for trauma.
There are mandatory daily 12-step meetings on-site. Residents are also encouraged to attend off-site meetings once a week and are required to find sponsors. His Sheltering Arms wants clients to get used to living a recovery-oriented lifestyle by the time they complete treatment.
His Sheltering Arms employs 17 staff members and seven interns. The core staff is a mixture of highly-credentialed professionals and peer counselors, with an overall staff-to-client ratio of one-to-16. Therapists are available to residents 24/7. A medical doctor visits the main facility for a total of eight hours a month and a clinical psychologist is on-site three days a week.
Extras
The main facility has a fitness area, equipped with stationary bikes and Stairmasters. Five days a week, a Zumba class is available. In addition, there is a Tae Kwan Do class taught by one of their in-house therapists.
His Sheltering Arms residents enjoy a variety of outings such as movies, plays, concerts and the circus.
This facility has a family program and, if requested, family counseling is offered to all residents. Weekend and major-holiday visitation is permitted—all visitors must be pre-approved. Outside guests are welcome between the hours of 1 pm and 5 pm. To be allowed visits, residents must have 30 days of sobriety. The exception is during major holidays, when newcomers who are less than 30 days sober are allowed to have visits from their children or loved ones. If residents incur a violation, visitation privileges are revoked for one week.
In Summary
His Sheltering Arms provides a safe, affordable place for women and children in need. What this facility may lack in luxury, it makes up for in solid recovery. Women from all walks of life can come here and get a second chance at life.
His Sheltering Arms Location
11101 S Main St
Los Angeles, CA 90061
His Sheltering Arms Cost: Sliding scale. Reach His Sheltering Arms by phone at (323) 755-6646 or (310) 532-8184 or by email at hisarmsinc@aol.com. Find His Sheltering Arms on Facebook, YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn
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Sponsored DISCLAIMER: This is a paid advertisement for California Behavioral Health, LLC, a CA licensed substance abuse treatment provider and not a service provided by The Fix. Calls to this number are answered by CBH, free and without obligation to the consumer. No one who answers the call receives a fee based upon the consumer’s choice to enter treatment. For additional info on other treatment providers and options visit www.samhsa.gov.
