Dale Alcock Home Improvement will do the renovation, two years after Dale Alcock Homes pioneered a project to build a new three-unit women’s wing at the centre.
Dale Alcock Home Improvement general manager Dean O’Rourke said the company wanted to give people recovering from drug and alcohol problems secure accommodation where they could be visited by their families.
‘The Salvation Army is such a worthy and hugely important charity organisation.
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READ NOW‘We hope that providing centre residents with a home-away-from home makes their recovery journey a bit easier.’
Pauline said living in the women’s wing of the Harry Hunter Centre while she undertook a rehabilitation program for alcohol abuse helped give her a new lease on life and hope for a healthy future.
She said the the accommodation was luxurious and gave residents a sense of pride.
‘It doesn’t feel like a rehabilitation centre. It feels like home,’ she said.
‘The centre offers spiritual recovery and healing.
‘I feel I have grown in the past 13 weeks and found a sense of inner peace. My future is bright and I can build toward a positive, healthy life.
‘Not one single day have I felt homesick, as the centre feels like home.
‘There’s a working farm, gym and pool, as well as the furnished accommodation.
‘The centre has changed my life. There’s so much support, advice and guidance that continues after you leave.’
The six-month project to renovate the men’s quarters includes 15 new bedrooms, each with private ensuite bathroom so that residents no longer had to share bathrooms.
The complex would have two main common areas, a tea room and a duty office. The outdoor verandah would be extended and smoke detectors, energy-efficient lighting and an alarm system installed.
Harry Hunter Centre manager, Salvation Army major Colin Medling, said the facility took a holistic approach to drug and alcohol recovery and continued to expand.
He said The Salvation Army opened the Harry Hunter Centre in 1961 and the facility supported more than 200 people a year, providing them with the opportunity to find freedom from addiction to a wide range of substances.
For more information on The Salvation Army’s Harry Hunter Centre, call (08) 9398 2077 or visit salvationarmy. org.au