Refuge on the Ridge Lake Wales (currently under construction)
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The nature of refuge on the ridge
What you’re getting into
When you first arrive at the Florida rehabilitation facility, one of the very first things you’ll do is meet someone who is the most unwelcoming and negative person you’ll encounter for some time. This person is the program director, James Adkins. Mr. Adkins has a deep criminal history involving theft and violence. You will feel extremely unwelcome and begin questioning your decision to come to this rehabilitation facility after you spend a couple of minutes with Mr. Adkins or “Jim.”
After this meeting is over, you will feel extremely unsure of your decision to arrive at the facility and even more concerned if you are court-ordered there. Jim is the one who “breaks the bad news” that you will be working for the program without pay for the next 10-11 1/2 months of your life.
The next part of your first day involves your arrival into your “room.” It will be shared with another resident, which is common in many residential program insights across the country. Your roommate will likely break the rest of the bad news to you. You will learn that there are no televisions for downtime, no books to read except for the Bible, no phone calls or mail for the time being, no smoking, no medication, etc. You will be required to wake up every morning at 6 a.m. and begin doing chores. After breakfast, you will do more chores and then sit with Jim for the next hour and a half watching redundant YouTube videos. Afterwards, around 10 a.m., you will go to work for the rest of the day. This will involve grueling landscape work on the property or going out and working for the facility's businesses with no pay. Every job will require you to work outdoors. For those with heart conditions, asthma, or any type of medical issues, May through October will be some of the toughest days of your life. The sun beating down on you in 100-degree weather every day for almost a year will affect you in ways you can’t understand.
The next part is hard to accept as well. My very first night there, I got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, and when I turned the light on, massive cockroaches were everywhere, even crawling on my toothbrush. Falling off the ceiling in the bathroom, I panicked and ran outside to sleep that first night. My roommate then informed me about the rat infestation and the excessive black mold throughout the facility. Rats will chew holes in the walls and scurry from room to room searching for food, things they just expect you to be okay with.
The facility is located on the former Chalet Suzanne lodge, which closed many years ago. Most buildings are collapsing, with roofs having gaping holes and rotted floors. The former restaurant is condemned, as are many other areas of the facility, making rodent and cockroach infestations a natural byproduct of such conditions.
Day number two for me at the facility involved me going into the office of Melissa Hilligoss, who had DCF on hold and explained to me that out of nowhere, I would be conducting a food stamp interview. She told me to lie and state I was not living on the property nor was I employed, which concerned me because I was working for them and they were receiving compensation on my behalf. That seemed like fraud to me. In any event, Hilligoss had my food card forwarded to the facility's address, and she would proceed to open my mail, confiscate my card, and set the pin on it. Hilligoss explained my card would be used to buy food for the entire program, which was partially true. It is common knowledge on the property that we are actually fed from Hilligoss’ association with the Freedom Tour and the local food bank. Even the staff members are quoted in the newspaper explaining that’s how we are fed. There is no mentor of the food cards. The food was mostly spoiled and expired. There was no viable drinking water on the property. After doing the math, 20 residents times $300 a month in benefits equals $6,000. Matthew Gamwell is quoted as saying it costs $240 a week to feed the residents, that was with 25 residents. Obviously, money from the food cards was being used elsewhere.
It eventually was explained to me from the kitchen manager Bobby that our food cards are mainly used to fund the unlicensed and for profit food truck known as Gary’s Big Back Burgers. This is a troubling aspect of the program. The food for the food truck is kept in a locked freezer and we were not allowed to work at the food truck. That was left to Matthew Gamwell.
Another hard truth about the program is its horrible completion rate. In my two months there I saw countless individuals kicked out or would leave the facility. A “staff” member Dave told me he had seen so many men kicked out that he was immune to it. I saw approximately 12-15 men leave in my two months. The news story links from Reveal cite that the completion rate of similar programs hovers below 8%. I believe ROTR is around 3%. There are only 50 graduates, some repeats, out of at least 450 men. I believe the number of participants is accurate from my conversation with Anderson Blair the facility executive director. A man who is quoted as saying he only gets to know the guys who make it to at least month 6 as so few do. For court ordered individuals like myself this is a warning. You are at a statistical disadvantage. The likely outcome is being forced out and going to prison.
I knew my days were numbered. Jim repeatedly made this clear to me. I was denied proper medical treatment and was infected with staph three times while there. The hospital set up an appointment to see a wound care specialist and ordered the facility to place me on bed rest until my wounds healed. I was denied this appointment and told work or go to jail. From Jim. He sent me back out in the heat ignoring the hospital order.
After complaining. I was called into Pastor Andy’s office and told I was becoming a problem. That I was “high maintenance”. Two days later my room was shook down and Legos I bought for 25 cents were found. I told the Pastor to simply call my job and ask for the assistant manager Jessica. That she would confirm I bought those. They never did and Jim told me to leave or he was calling the cops. My family later called the care center and confirmed I was telling the truth. This story will be added to over the next week. As well as testimonials from at least 8 other ex residents.
