Under bright sunlight and blue skies, actress and singer Melba Moore came to share her experience, strength and hope to an eager crowd of recovering addicts at Integrity House on Wednesday afternoon. During her 35-year career, the Tony Award-winning actress starred on Broadway in Hair, Purlie and Les Miserables. She lived in Harlem and Newark as a child.
Moore did a rendition of her two act one-woman play, Sweet Songs of the Soul, on a makeshift stage among tall trees and a very receptive audience. The autobiographical show recounts her abuse and financial exploitation by boyfriends, husbands and business managers, as well as a near-fatal infection, and estrangement from her daughter.Integrity House is often the last stop for addicts and alcoholic seeking recovery and refuge. The facility supports a Therapeutic Community philosophy where self-help and a community setting allow members to examine and challenge destructive behaviors. Instead of being referred to as clients or patients, residents are called members or students. “The main idea is to grow up and take charge of your life,” said Senior Vice President Robert Budsock. “This is a mutual help concept. We don’t treat patients – we participate in the program of recovery of each member.”
Tales from the past
Moore said she hoped by telling the residents about her poverty, homelessness, jail and drug addiction, she could show parallels and the promise of recovery.
“I notice some of you are not of the African-American persuasion, but today you will be honorary members – we can all become one through song and story,” said Moore.
The veteran songstress started with a moving rendition of Lift up Your Voice and Feel My Heart Sing, a song known as the Negro national anthem. Her storytelling skills held the crowd captive with laughter, tears and shouts of joy and identification. A recounting of Southern-style family life in the North ran from hilarity to somber darkness.
The last stop
Christine Michael, 26, graduated from a Catholic high school in New Jersey and moved to Washington, D.C. to study anthropology at the Catholic College of America. She said she was not prepared for the transition from a structured life in Westfield to the freedom of a big city. Michael became involved in the “Rave” scene. Her life quickly took a downward spiral.
“It was emotional, cultural shock. I was attracted to the fantasy-like environment of that subculture and became very involved in it,” said Michael.
While the “ravers” used PLUR [Peace, Love, Unity, Respect] as their motto, Michael said something completely different lay on the other side of the coin. She went to all night parties and use drugs like Ecstasy, methamphetamines and marijuana.
“All that just masked a façade of degradation. The flashing lights deter you from the danger,” said Michael. Michael first started to correct her problem in 2000 by going to Anderson House in Hunterdon County, a residential program for women substance abusers. She stayed in recovery for four years until it took a back seat to her college studies. She reverted to drug use and was arrested for the second time on drug possession charges. Michael came to Integrity House five months ago on a Drug Court order. She will complete the residency part of the program in June. She said she felt thankful that she has had a second chance.
“God’s grace is amazing. I am rebuilding a foundation to find my place in society,” said Michael. “Integrity House offers a wide range of demographics in the population from all walks of life. We learn from each other.”
Eyes to see
Blair Rambough is a 50-year-old from Trenton. He was a heroin abuser for 30 years. He came to Integrity House from the Department of Corrections. Once an athletic 16-year-old with promise, he turned to a life of a dealer after his mother died when he was 15.
“It was there, there was peer pressure, I made a bad choice,” said Rambough. “I got into material things of the lifestyle of selling for profit but wound up being my own best customer. I just couldn’t see my way out.” This is the second time for Rambough at Integrity House. After he completed the program in 1998, he began working at AT&T processing contracts. He stayed clean for over two years but “didn’t stay connected to recovery.”
“My thinking became clouded and I stopped working on myself,” said Rambough. “Addicts have a false sense of reality – they are predisposed to being somewhere else.”
Rambough has been working as a case aide for the all male juvenile division for the last year. He has been in Integrity House for 17 months. He helps members with their treatment plans, conducts individual counseling sessions, facilitates group therapy, and runs a therapy group to help residents stop smoking. He says he enjoys seeing members change and achieve their goals to build a new life. By giving back to the House, he gets more out his own life.
“I identify with their pain and can let go of my own. We grow and change for the better together,” said Rambough.