Purpose
The purpose of Trinity House–Big Bethel is to prepare homeless men to live independently by:
- Discovering and embracing their spirituality
- Encouraging the cessation of drug use and other dysfunctional behaviors
- Obtaining and maintaining employment
- Establishing savings significant to them (usually $1,000 or more)
- Achieving individually-defined goals
- Paying rent and other monthly bills
The Trinity House–Big Bethel program is an intensely rigorous program culturally specific but not exclusive to African American men seeking to develop every aspect of their lives. Trinity House–Big Bethel is comprised of multiple modalities, including but not limited to:
- Positive peer culture
- Group and individual counseling
- Critical Thinking
- Community Service
- Employment assistance
- Cultural Specificity
- Encounter Confrontation Therapy
An important aspect of the Trinity House-Big Bethel program is based in recovery counseling. All residents are offered counseling as a tool for grappling with addiction and other barriers they may face.
The program structure helps participants achieve self-reliance by requiring them to obtain full-time, permanent employment within four months of entering. Counselors meet with residents individually to discuss career goals and monitor their progress through employment training initiatives. Once employed, residents are encouraged to bring all job-related issues, problems, and conflicts to group therapy sessions. These sessions focus on continued employment as the key to independent living.
Residents are strongly encouraged to save a minimum of $80 per week, thus establishing and reinforcing disciplined spending as a prerequisite of future self-sufficiency. Therapy is also emphasized as a productive method of dealing with emotional issues and conflicts. This focus on employment and self-sufficiency encourages the residents to work diligently at their jobs. Many participants receive promotions or obtain higher-paying positions while still in the program.
