r-East RIDEAUVIEW Rehabilitation! iome created from school By Cathy Campbell Citizen staff writer The recess bells will be ringing again today at Rideauview School on the River Road in Gloucester. But they won't be calling children in from the schoolyard. They'll be announcing meal time for 15 young men from Harvest House drug and alcohol rehabilitation home. On Monday, the Carleton Board of Education decided to lease the vacant four-room school to Harvest House for $1,600 a month and its new residents are busy painting, plastering, cutting lawns and planting gardens on their new property. The residents are creating a home out of the school by dividing two classrooms into six bedrooms and transforming other classrooms into a dining room, meeting room and kitchen. The two-year-old home, run by Bill Main and his wife Katherine, was formerly housed in a three-storey red brick house on Belmont Street in Ottawa. Main was forced to move because his lease ran out this month. Main, who lives with his wife and three children in Hunt Club in a home of their own, says he and the Harvest House staff of two earn only enough for room and board. The home, which operates on a budget of $3,000 a month, is funded entirely with "unsolicited donations from private individuals. I get cheques from people I don't even know." Bill Mitchell, 39, a former drug addict now on staff at Harvest House says: "It's very difficult to explain how the house is supported. No one is on welfare or unemployment insurance, but no one has a job. "Money to support the house comes from people's hearts people who have been helped by Harvest House or people we've prayed for." Main's program teaches men to turn to the Bible for guidance instead of the bottle. Bible study occupies much of the day and most of the men are "born again" when they leave. Randy Bell, 18, from Cambridge, Ont., is one of the young men in Main's program. Last September, Bell came to Harvest House on the recommen--dation of his pastor. He was addicted to acid, speed and grass "anything I could get my hands on" and was facing a charge of robbery. "I first came here to look like I was doing something half-decent so I might stand a chance of not going to jail," said Bell, "I'd been there before for theft and possession of a dangerous weapon." A month after moving into Harvest House, Main went to court with Bell in Cambridge and the youth got two years' probation instead of jail. "The Lord just worked," said Bell. "I walked out with two years' probabation. I was praying throughout the court case." Bell says he's been in other rehabilitation programs "but the course here works. You change your life around here and everything. Bill Main would bend over backwards to help you as long as you're willing to change." Bell says he plans on staying at Harvest House until his probation is over and then go to Bible college. Main himself battled alcoholism for 10 years, until he says he "found Christ," joined Alcoholics fa I ,j Nl. Citizen photo Donald Knowles, Darren Smith work on school Anonymous, and began spreading the gospel. Although the new River Road location is not as central as the old house, Main says moving out of the city will benefit the program. "When you run a place for junkies, this place is too close to Bank Street and the action." The Belmont Street house was only one block from Bank. Main isn't the only person pleased with the move. Although he says he had good rapport with the Belmont Street neighbors, some are glad to see him move. "We're recognizing their concerns," he says, "It's not good for the property value of their homes to have a busy place like this on the street." Main chose River Road because it's isolated surrounded by farm land and the Rideau River. However, Rideauview Community Association objected to its new neighbor at the CBE meeting when the school's leasing was approved. "I was really surprised at the depth of their feeling," said Main. "I was surprised they'd comment so quickly without coming to talk with us." But he said he can understand the comrnunity's reaction: "Obvi 'iXTiiTii !. nil's . . . .am ously they're afraid. We will attempt to assure them of our good faith and good intentions. I'm going to invite all of them to come and meet with us and see that there's not a lot wrong with these boys." Staff-Sgt. Tom McKay, of the Ottawa police's morality division, says police have always had good co-operation from Main. "Whenever there's a problem Bill Main has no hesitation to report it to us. He'll go to court, if required, to give evidence about anyone in the house. I can't say anything bad about him." In addition to Harvest House, there is only one other drug and alcohol rehabiliat ion home in Ottawa for young men in their late teens and early 20s. It's called Our House and run by Norm Sharkey; it's also a Christian home, supported by St. Barnabas Church and All Saints Anglican Church in Westboro. Other halfway homes for men in Ottawa are Serenity House, Sobrity House, House of Welcome, Gateway House and Fraternity House. Harvest House has an option to buy Rideauview School before December 1984. The monthly rent will be deducted from the school's sale price of $178,000 if the building is sold.