HOPE of East Tennessee Provides Help For Those In Need
HOPE has been in Oak Ridge since 1976, providing alcohol and drug treatment for adults through three distinct programs.
Sponsored by: HOPE of East Tennessee
Mandy Colburn, executive director of HOPE of East Tennessee, is on a mission.
“People are dying out there,” she says. “And we want to help them. We want them to know there is an alternative.”
HOPE has been in Oak Ridge since 1976, providing alcohol and drug treatment for adults through three distinct programs.
Opportunity House, a residential inpatient program, is for men only. Clients stay 45 days, receiving around-the-clock services, counseling and education.
A separate intensive outpatient program allows male and female clients to live at home and come to the HOPE facility three hours a day, four days a week for group counseling and education.
HOPE’s transitional living program is open to men and women who have completed a residential program within the past 30 days. At this stage, clients may work and be active in the wider community, all while living in a supportive peer environment before they are completely out on their own. The program maintains three transitional apartments with a total of 16 beds.
HOPE is licensed and funded by Tennessee’s Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, including grant funding to ensure those who qualify can receive inpatient or outpatient services at no cost.
“If they have no insurance or meet the poverty guidelines, they get to come for free,” she adds.
Colburn says someone once asked her why HOPE doesn’t operate as a for-profit program.
“It’s because I want to be able to keep serving the people we serve,” she notes. “I tell our staff, just because these people aren’t paying for treatment doesn’t mean they get treated as less than. Everyone who walks in this door gets treated the same as if they were paying $30,000.
“Everyone deserves dignity and respect, and to be treated as a person,” Colburn concludes.
“Our clients tell us they can feel the difference in our program, they feel cared for. They can tell they mean something at our program.
