Testimonials

For greater insight into life at the Archway House residence and our services, see what some of our other residents have to say about their experiences with us:

“One of the things I wasn't able to do or enjoy without sobriety was loving myself. And through learning how to do that, my life has changed dramatically.

Life before the Executive Recovery Program at the Archway House was full of fear for me and I was numb. I had developed such a negative survival skill and skills from my childhood trauma that I really wasn't aware of. I was stuck in a negative program. I was full of pain and suffering. I chose Archway House because of Charlie Smith and because it felt, and was, and still is a home for me.

My experience at Archway House and the benefits of its recovery program was amazing and life changing for me. And it took two things. Number one, it took me knowing and wanting the help, knowing that I needed the help and welcoming it. And two, it took a place like the Archway House. They really wanted to help me and really had the experience to do so.

Archway House is unique. A lot of sober living homes have a lot of people in different ages. And our house was older guys, not teenagers or early twenties. But it’s a bunch of guys that are professionals that really want, really want a better life for themselves. So having that all together creates a synergy within the group.

It really helped me become the man that I am today and will continue to build upon. Mike Conroy and Charlie Smith are both amazing, and men that have extensive knowledge in recovery. It's not just knowledge in recovery that matters because a lot of people can read books and go through programs and study. But these two men really, really care. They sit down with you. They take the time. And because of that Archway House is really a home. I continue to go to Archway House. Once you leave, you're always welcome back.

It really feels like a safe place, and it really reminds me of who I was. Which is good because I never want to forget how awful I felt about myself. I still have friends at Archway House. I'll make new friends at Archway House, and I have since I've left. I'm very fortunate to be able to be a part of that home.”

— Ian C.

“I am a very grateful recovering alcoholic. I have Charlie Smith and Archway House to thank for the help they gave me in getting rid of my old life. In May of 2018 I went into treatment and was outside of my house for about 18 months. I spent four months in treatment and was unable to return to my home. I had a success business, and a home with a family that I had pretty much burned to the ground. I was really unsure about where my next steps would be. I knew from people that I talked to in treatment that sober living homes weren’t really where I wanted to be. I didn’t want to participate in 22 people to a house.

Archway House was the perfect option for me. It catered to professionals. I spent 13 months at Archway and during that Time Charlie Smith and Mike Conroy were there every step of the way to help me deal with all the changing factors that deal with recovery. To this day they are still in contact. I’m so grateful for the opportunity I had. I don’t want another recovery or different recovery. I have been fortunate enough to be introduced to a way of living that is absolutely amazing.

Thankfully I was able to repair my relationship and move back into my house. My wife and I are better than we’ve ever been and my relationship with my kids is back. The only thing that changed was me and how I look at everything in life. It was such a transitional recovery.

I do not believe I would have been able to get here without the men and women at Archway House. My housemates were supportive, the environment in the house so so supportive. It wasn’t like being in 24/7 therapy, but we had weekly dinners, and base touching sessions, checking in seeing what was going on with each and every one of us. We shared our experiences, our challenges and our triumphs. Being a part of that was amazing, and I am so very grateful.”

— Paul M.

“When I came to the conclusion I needed to fix something as far as addiction I did the normal option that you hear and went to rehab. Everything is restricted and everything is planned out for you. At first that is nice, but once I left and went back to my life I had a 30 day period where everything I had negatively built up in my life was continuing to stack. All of my problems were magnified, and I was ripped away from the support I had in rehab. I ended up going back to my old habits and addictions. All those things caught back up to me. I ended up in a sober living home and went in there with people that needed to look good for courts, their family put them there, or they had an intervention and really had no other options. I was mixing with a group of people that weren’t necessarily lined up with where I was in life. They weren’t in alignment with the lifestyle I was attempting to maintain. I would go to work come back and it was like a sober frat house. 

What’s interesting about the Executive Recovery Program at Archway House is that it’s a hybrid. There is the support of a sober living home and a program of recovery. Physical recovery, therapy, house meetings, and performance training that includes mental and business training. I had all these things set up for me on a daily basis. You stay in a house with like-minded people that are aiming for the same goals. The difference I had in this recovery program were the people involved. Having Charlie Smith’s guidance and mentorship was massive. I became willing to do what he said and work with anyone he said to work with. It was the first time in my life that I stopped lying, started to maintain actual sobriety, and started having measurable success almost every day. If I had continued in my addiction any longer, I would have lost my friendships, family relationship and reputation. I was finally able to get really honest with myself, do the things that were asked of me, start to check my ego, and build my life back up. I was lucky enough to do it before I lost everything that mattered to me.”

— Charles N.