Proverbs Ministries brings faith to drug, alcohol rehabilitation

Two years ago, Mark and Michelle Retter were looking forward to building a residential rehabilitation center and working farm for alcoholic and drug-addicted men near Homestead.

Today they're looking forward to summer when the farm can be planted and, hopefully, new residents can help nurture the land while recovering from their addictions.

“It's more of a discipleship than anything else,” said Mark Retter, 49. “Everything we teach here comes straight out of the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous or from PromiseKeepers or somewhere like that.”

Proverbs Ministries, built on 20 acres of land, has the Retter's home as well as a mobile home that can house up to six residents, a workshop, a garage and about 19 acres of land ready to be farmed. Retter has onions, tomatoes and red and green peppers starting from seed under lights in his basement, and red and black raspberries and strawberries ready to bud when the snow melts.

What he needs now, he said, is men to fill the center.

Proverbs Ministries is for men who are ready to get past their alcoholism and drug addiction and move on to a more positive life, Retter said. The men live on site for up to 18 months, work the land, sell the produce and attend regular Bible study meetings and church services.

Each man pays $350 monthly for living expenses, and Retter said they have to come voluntarily - the center doesn't accept those who are trying to fulfill a court order.

The Retters have plans to add more bunkhouses, a staff office building and other buildings on the site. Right now, though, there's just one man living in the mobile home and no immediate plans for anyone else to come in. The couple has hosted more than a half-dozen men since May, but Retter said more men need to be aware of the program and what is being offered.

Retter knows making the decision to walk away from drugs and alcohol isn't an easy one; a recovering alcoholic himself, he's been sober for 20 years. He gives God the credit for his sobriety and direction, and he wants to give others the opportunity to find that faith, too.

“It's been an amazing process of allowing God to take over and shape my life,” he said.

That's just what Patrick Fairchild was looking for when he found the Retters and Proverbs Ministries.

Fairchild, 55, of the small town of Pilot Mound in central Iowa, said that in February he'd “lost yet another job because of my alcoholism” when he called a hot line number he found in the Yellow Pages.

“I didn't know what to do. I'd been through treatment before - regular treatment - and that never worked,” he said. “They gave me Mark's number, I called and we talked and that's when I knew I needed to be here.”

He's confident he is moving in the right direction now, he said, because “now I have faith. I never had that before, and without faith you can't get well.”

“I'm confident, I don't feel depressed anymore,” Fairchild said. “I have a purpose.”