Dove Recovery House for Women helps women to change their lives

INDIANAPOLIS — Dozens of substance abuse advocates are making themselves heard in a bus tour that is making stops all around the nation.

The bus is organized by Mobilize Recovery — an advocacy group that pushes for treatment methods for substance abuse.

Monday night, the bus is making a pit stop at the Dove Recovery House for Women – the largest housing program for women in Marion County.

"I stayed in the dark a long time because I thought that no one cared if I ever found help but people do care," Peer Recovery Case Manager Kristy Shene said.

Shene is one of the many advocates looking to help. Day in and day out for nearly three years she has helped guide women throughout their journey to recovery.

“I get to see the seeds that were planted here at this organization grow and change their lives later on and what that can look like and it’s pretty amazing,” Shene said.

Now a before and after picture of Shene sits along the wall of the dove house.

She was a resident here on two different occasions.

“I was an angry person, and I was a hurting person and when I came here those were the only things that I could feel and the dove house helped me weed out the bad feelings so I could also find out there was joy in life,” Shene said.

You can say Shene has made a 180-degree turnaround and is using her pain and struggles to make sure these women can and will do the same. The Dove Recovery House for Women says the average length of stay per woman is about eight and a half months.

“My story is a lot like other women’s story. I was abused, I had a lot of pain, I didn’t know who I was and when I came to dove house, I was able to sort through all of that and find the amazing woman that lived within me,” Shene said.

The Dove Recovery House for Women says on average there are 135 women on the waitlist.

They are in the middle of a campaign 5,000 square foot expansion to its Indianapolis campus with the addition of an onsite community outreach center and an additional 15 beds.

To learn more about The Dove Recovery House for Women and how you can help click here.