Community-service projects help people in recovery overcome the inward-looking nature of addiction and reconnect with their neighbors, treatment experts say.

The Port Townsend (Wash.) Leader reported July 12 that community service is an integral part of the recovery process at Gray Wolf Ranch, with residential-treatment participants giving their time doing landscaping, mowing lawns, removing trash, moving furniture, and painting. Volunteers work for groups like Habitat for Humanity, the Port Townsend Aero Museum, the Northwest Maritime Center, and the North Olympic Salmon Coalition.

"The ranch has a 12-step philosophy of recovery, and one of the steps is to focus on others as a way to work on sobriety," said Gray Wolf program director Woody Bernas. "The nature of addiction is to be self-centered, and the antidote is to reach out and focus on other people's needs. Volunteering in the community is one way to make a contribution."

Peter Boeschenstein, another program official, noted that volunteerism also helps "build a strong, positive relationship between the ranch and the Port Townsend community."

Some of the Gray Wolf volunteers work with the Grant Street Elementary School. "I have nothing but praise for the kids, the program, and the partnership," said school principal Steve Finch. Some parents have been initially leery about people in recovery working with their kids, he noted, but the program results have helped to ease concerns.