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Penn-North Recovery offers program that allows recovering addicts to remain with their children

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Mothers who have battled addiction are finding a place to recover while continuing to care for their children in Baltimore.

"There shouldn't be a choice between getting clean and being a mommy," Ericka Alston-Buck said. She's the CEO of Penn-North Recovery, which is offering a new Women's and Children's program. As part of the initiative women can pay between $150 to $200 a month to share the space with their kids.

"They attend intensive outpatient treatment for substance abuse, they see a counselor, and they get a 10-week family strengthening program," Alston-Buck explained.

Kathy Rohrer's son Joel was put into foster care when she sought treatment for alcohol addiction. "When they took him from me, I hit the lowest I ever hit," she said. "I was living in code blue, I was actually literally homeless."

Rohrer's been reunited with Joel, and she said he's thriving at the center. She's celebrating over 60 days of sobriety.

"I've just been bouncing from couch to couch, place to place, and this has been an opportunity to have some stability, to create a home for my daughter, said Krystel Noble, another program participant.

Nine women call the facility home and 22 are on the waiting list. Everything inside of the homes has been donated.

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