Ark of Little Cottonwood

A New Life!. It is sad to hear the allegations presented against The Arc. I walked out of there with such a positive outlook on life and a new appreciation for life. I never felt like I was being being humiliated or frightened by any of the staff. They were nothing but helpful to my recovery. I was never verbally abused in any way. I never witnessed any family members being treated unfairly at any point. As far as the maual labor situation goes, picking up horse manure and feeding the horses was just a chore you did in the morning and it wasn't even as bad as everyone is making it sound!. They even made sure you had a partner to help you with it. We did a little spring cleaning for a small part of one day, just raking up leaves basically. Everyone was willing to help. I never felt like we were being taken advantage of. Mowing your yard by yourself was more work than what we did. It was nice being outside with everyone working together as a team. Especially a bunch of addicts! Ha! I was able to receive and write an unlimited amount of letters, so I was always in contact with family or friends. That right was never taken away nor was it even mentioned that it would be taken away as punishment. I was able to see my family every week, even if you were in a little bit of trouble for not following the rules or bad behavior, you were still able to see your family every week. This is such an amazing place. It was comfortable. .It was positive. If you really want to change your life for the better, be sober and feel happy while being sober this is the place to be. I am grateful for my experience there and I will never forget The Arc, because today, I am sober and hopeful.…

Not What We Had Expected. We approached the Ark for our son at a time of great family sorrow and vulnerability. Right after sending him off, we were allowed no contact with him and none from him to us. We were surprised by the hostility displayed by the staff toward us as parents. They were virtually impossible to get ahold of by phone and were not responsive to us, despite the fact that we were paying the bill!

We saw their ad in General Conference, and assumed because they had their own LDS 12-step and constantly talked about how compatible they were with LDS teachings (even though in the next breath they said they were 'nondemoninational'), that spiritually speaking our son would be fine there. Instead, he very quickly became hostile toward the Church after his arrival, and it has taken him over a year since his release to get back to where he was prior to his admission. He is fine now, thanks to his own efforts and the help of some very caring and deeply committed friends. I was particularly disturbed that their system made it very difficult for our son's Bishop to go see him during the first month when he was alone in that place and so vulnerable and impressionable.

We found out later that he was being denied visits from us for "disobedience" - not doing chores, etc.

We also discovered way too late that their pricing is way out of bounds versus comparable programs in the state of Utah.

We were also disturbed to learn that much of the "teaching" and "correction" and "advice" they receive while going through the program is given by other addicts!

A very sorry experience indeed.…

Life is good. For the first time in many years, my life is good. I have peace and happiness in my sobriety, thanks to the counselors at The Ark. It was and is the hardest thing I've ever done, and there were times when I wanted to quit and just give up. I had all kinds of excuses for my addiction, and I was always trying to blame everyone else in my life, rather than take responsibility for my own actions. What I finally realized was that my addiction and my recovery was up to me. The good people at the Ark could give me the tools and show me the way to stay clean and sober, but ultimately it was up to me with the help of my higher power to use the tools to stay clean. I have nothing but gratitude for my family who have been so supportive, my higher power, and the counselors and staff at the Ark.…

The ARK is SINKING ! READ THIS !. The office of licensing of the UT dept. of Human Services have placed the ark's license on a Conditional Status for multiple violations: R501-2-7(C) No mgmt. person or staff shall use methods to humiliate or frighten a consumer.

R501-2-8 (A) (8) The right to be treated with dignity

R501(A)(11) The right to send and receive mail

R5012-9(G) Treatment shall be provided or supervised by professional staff whose qualifications are approved in accordance with state law.

301-19-10.C Prescriptive medications shall be provided by a qualified physician according to Medical practices

Act.

There are many ethical violations by staff at the ark of little cottonwood.

Clients shamed, embarrassed and verbally abused

Improper use of clients for manual labor for personal gain.

Denying family members involvement in treatment as a form of disipline.

Clients rights (dignity,communication w/family, mail)are not enforeced at the ark

Family members of clients are not treated fairly or with professionalism by executive staff at the ark

Medications are have been given to individuals who they have not been prescribed

G dictates all treatment planning and methods at the ark. She is not licensed to diagnose, determing appropriate mental health treatment or medication…