by Herb Gunn

[Detroit, Mich: July 1, 2008]

‘“Mariners’ Inn is in the mission of providing hope,” said Jim Hartz, the new chief executive officer for the shelter and treatment center for men on the north side of downtown Detroit. “A lot of the guys who come to us, because of the addiction process, have to some extent lost hope and faith. Sometimes life is just not okay. Our task, specifically around the issue of chemical dependence and addiction, is to let the men know that they can recover; they can obtain a joy in life that can be restored to them.”

Hartz has a 22-year history in treatment and administration in the field of chemical and dependency and substance abuse exercised through hospital and outpatient programming. Recently, he was a division director for youth and families services through Matrix Human Services, focusing on teens, after-school programming and residential treatment for girls. He came to Mariners’ Inn at the beginning of June.

Although Hartz has been with Mariners’ Inn only a short while, he hasn’t lost any time in connecting the mission of the Inn with the mission of the many Episcopal churches that have a long-standing commitment to the 50-year-old recovery agency: Lives are transformed when people have hope.

First and foremost, Hartz wants to reconnect Mariners’ Inn with the faith community that has been supportive in the past and shares its vision for building a strong future. He has met with several Episcopal priests during his first five weeks on the job­—and he doesn’t want others to wait to be called. Hartz has a vision for how Mariners’ Inn and the local churches can work together to address the disease and the impact of substance abuse.

Hartz wants to invite ministers, priests and rabbis to go through a modest training and be prepared to help the men of Mariners’ Inn embrace the parts of a 12-step program that call for self-examination in a safe, caring and loving environment. He also envisions another half-dozen ways that Episcopalians can be helpful to the ongoing work of the center.

But it’s a partnership, Hartz explained. On its side of the bargain, he believes that Mariners’ Inn can become a notable resource center for substance abuse so that churches can turn to the agency for information and advice when they need to.

He recognizes that the mission of Mariners’ Inn and the mission of the church is the same—and because of that, he wants to reinvigorate the connection of Mariners’ Inn and its longtime supporters around the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan.

 “As part of the process of getting men into recovery, we really want to try to affect mind, body and soul. The disease of chemical dependency affects all three parts of us,” he said. “Each gentleman has to define what spiritual means to him.”

Hartz defines it as “a real excitement about life. ‘I am here; I am important; I am valuable; and there is something beyond me that is going to keep me going.’”

With a $2.8 million annual budget, Mariners’ Inn is a three-tier program of treatment and recovery for men through a residential program for 60 men, the Mariners’ Extended Residency Program for 28 men who have completed the residential program, and a Transitional Housing program. Mariners’ Inn also maintains a 10-bed emergency shelter.

But even with about 100 men under its roof, Hartz said, “there is room for growth. This disease isn’t going away.”

In fact, Hartz calls it “an equal opportunity illness. It doesn’t care about your race, sex, socio-economic, where you live.”

Mariners’ Inn has expansive plans for combating the disease that include establishing an out-patient response center at the Mariners’ Inn location and exploring ways to promote safe housing that will enhance the chances of long-term recovery of the men.

“The longer a person stays involved or around a treatment environment, the higher the probability of doing very well. We also know that if the person is employed and has stable support systems—family, church, friends, the higher the probability of doing very well,” he said. “So I am very interested in trying to find ways to obtain more housing opportunities for the guys coming out of our transitional housing that need safe, affordable housing.”

The success of Mariners’ Inn is due to a partnership of supporting churches, agencies and city and federal government, but the real work toward recovery is in the hands of the men who come through the programs and who overcome the ravages of substance abuse and chemical dependency.

“We understand the dynamics of the disease. We can successfully intervene,” said Hartz. “That’s why I like to say, first and primarily, we are in the business of providing hope.”