Media & News:
Director's Corner— Spring 2010
by Sharon Chambers, Executive Director
In Memory of Our Founder
Spring greetings. My column this quarter is in memory of Margie Clemente, the founder of Residence XII. It was her pioneering work, along with her husband Art, which laid the groundwork for the agency you see today. Margie and Art, along with a few other visionaries, saw the need for a treatment program just for women and none existed at the time. They formed a non-profit corporation in 1979, and Residence XII opened its doors as a sober house in 1981. Obviously the agency has grown and evolved over the years, but Margie and Art started it all.
Margie remained a passionate ambassador of recovery and supporter of Residence XII until her death in January from lung cancer. When I spoke at her memorial service, I shared the following quote by Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg that is special to me:
I stand on the shoulders
Of all those women who
Have gone before
I relate this quote to Residence XII because I have followed Margie Clemente, Marion Hutton Schoen and Margaret Jones as the Executive Director of this organization. Two of them are now gone, but their life work continues here.
I think everyone would like to leave some kind of legacy when they die. For many people, it is their children and grandchildren. Margie certainly left a family legacy. She also left a legacy by starting Residence XII. Her spirit and work continues through the women and families who enter our doors daily seeking hope, health and recovery. That work will continue for many years to come. Margie will be missed, but her legacy lives on at Residence XII.
Learn More About Us: Subscribe to our Quarterly Email Newsletter
Receive an email containing articles, news, and other information from our quarterly print newsletter. Read Residence XII news as well as articles about living the sober life, women and chemical dependency, and current research on the subject. Emails are sent approximately 4 times a year
Sign up here>>