WELCOME INFORMATION FOR ARA RESIDENTS
MEAL HOURS
Breakfast
Monday thru Friday 6:00 a.m. – 7:15 a.m.
Saturday 7:00 a.m. – 8:15 a.m.
Sunday Brunch 8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Everybody should be up for breakfast. Beds are to be made each day
Lunch
12:00 noon to 12:30 p.m., 6 days a week. Lunch is not served on Sunday.
If you are working or going to school, sign the lunch list posted by the kitchen door and check the appropriate day. Sunday evenings is a good time to sign the lunch list for the upcoming week. A bag lunch will be waiting for you by 6:00 a.m. on the day indicated.
Dinner
5:30 p.m. to 6:15 p.m, 7 days a week.
If you are working or going to school, that you cannot be here at dinner hour, sign the “Late Dinner List” posted by the kitchen door or call no later than 5:00 p.m. and a dinner will be saved for you.
The holiday (national) meal schedule is:
Breakfast 8:00 to 9:15 a.m.;
No lunch;
Dinner at 4:30 to 6:00 p.m.
TELEPHONE
Do not answer any house business phone when it rings. Coverage by the house is provided
from 6:00 a.m. to 12:00 midnight. The house business phone is 863-3661. Do not give out this number except to
persons that need to confirm your residency or talk to a staff member regarding ARA First Step Home matters.
These could include GA workers, probation officers, referrals, future landlords, counselors, etc. This number can also be used for emergency reasons.
There is one public pay phone for residents incoming and outgoing calls. Inform friends, relatives, sponsors, future employers, and significant others of the phone number as appropriate. Resident are responsible for answering this telephone. Three buzzes in your room indicate a phone call. Limit your calls to 10 minutes. After 10:00 p.m. only emergency calls will be answered.
CURFEW
You are required to be in the house at 12:00 midnight Sunday thru Thursday: 1:00 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.
Emergency exceptions may be granted ONLY by a staff member.
EXCEPTIONS CANNOT BE APPROVED BY THE NIGHT PERSON.
OVERNIGHT PASS
After 30 days and up to 90 days, you may have two overnight passes a week on your weekend (Friday and Saturday if you are unemployed, or whatever your weekend is if you are employed ). You must notify the office in advance about your planned absence. After 90 day residency, 3 nights may be taken – you must notify the office or the night person before 10:00 p.m. and an overnight can be taken any night of the week. However, if more than three overnights are needed in any seven-day period, the Executive Director or Resident Manager must be consulted in advance.
HOUSE MEETING
A mandatory House meeting is held at 6:30 p.m. each Tuesday. Permission to miss this meeting must be granted in advance. A group discussion follows each meeting.
A.A. MEETINGS
During your first six months at First Step House, you must attend the Monday and Thursday night AA meeting at 7:30 p.m. plus one outside meeting each week. Any resident who has been here over 6 months and is physically in the house at the time our Monday and Thursday night AA meetings are in progress must attend the meeting. These meetings and all other AA meetings are to be recorded on your weekly progress report. Any exceptions must be approved in advance by the Director.
MON/FRI MEETING
Any resident that is unemployed must attend MANDATORY Check-In meeting every Monday and Friday mornings at 9:00 a.m. in the dining room.
WORK DETAIL
You will be assigned a housework detail soon after admission. This detail is your responsibility until you have been notified otherwise. The Houseman oversees the assignments and will answer any questions regarding such. The work detail is mandatory and is regarded as part of the agreement for residency in the house. Failure to meet this responsibility could result in a request to leave the house.
RESIDENTS’ COMMITTEE
After your first Tuesday night house meeting, you will meet with a Resident Committee member to discuss these rules and other areas of general information. The Resident’s Committee is comprised of senior residents, who have demonstrated responsibility and interest in helping new residents.
RESIDENT’S MAILING ADDRESS
1035 Haight St., San Francisco, CA 94117
FIRE ALARM SYSTEMS
Familiarize yourself with the locations of manual fire alarms and fire extinguishers throughout the house. Please become aware of the fire exits and escape routes, particularly from your sleeping area. There is an electrical fire alarm system throughout the house and there are smoke alarms in every room. Please inform the office if your smoke alarm malfunctions in any way. In case of fire, evacuate the house by the nearest exit.
Fire escapes are NOT to be used for transit (except in an emergency situation) unless authorized by the office.