History

The Center has a long and storied history. In early 1971, under the auspices of the Orange County Health Department, The Center, then known as Project (407), opened as the first drug rehabilitation center in the Central Florida area. By the end of its first year, Project 407 was incorporated as a not-for-profit organization under the name Thee Door. The agency’s first major service expansion came in 1972 with the opening of the first methadone treatment program in Central Florida. In 1973, Thee Door opened the Youth Development Center, an adolescent treatment program. In 1975, TASC (Treatment Alternatives to Street Crime) was created to provide comprehensive services for substance abusers within the criminal justice system.

Although initial programs focused on treatment, it was evident that treatment alone was not the answer to the drug problem. In 1976 the Alpha Center was opened. A collaboration with Orange County Public Schools, the Alpha Center targeted school children ages 8 – 12 who were at risk for substance abuse, truancy and dropping out of school and delinquency. Alpha’s success paved the way for expansion and the introduction of other innovative school-based programs including New Horizons, a substance abuse intervention program for high-school students. Today the agency provides school-based services in three counties to elementary, middle and high-school students. 

In 1982, in order to better reflect its ongoing mission, the agency changed its name to The Center For Drug - Free Living, Inc. The following has seen a series of expansions and enhancements of diversified services designed to meet the growing needs of the Central Florida community. One of the most successful of these expansions was the creation of Midnight Basketball of Florida. Opened in 1991 with one site, the program now serves youth at 16 different sites in 3 different counties. In addition to Midnight Basketball, The Center serves thousands of youth and families through various prevention and intervention programs across Central Florida. They include Village House, Neighborhood Enrichment Centers, Breaking The Cycle, and the Regional Prevention Center (RPC). The Center’s RPC is one of seven throughout Florida that work to link state and local drug prevention strategies and provide expertise and support to community-based anti-drug and violence prevention coalitions.

In addition to prevention services, The Center is also a major provider of residential commitment and rehabilitation services for juvenile offenders.   The Center opened the first of these residential treatment programs in 1993 and now operates centers in Osceola and Brevard Counties. These programs work with more than 400 youth every year, helping them regain control of their lives and avoid the long-term results associated with criminal behavior.

The Center has also worked to meet the needs of Central Florida’s adult residents. With financial support from the United Way, federal, state and local leaders, The Center has developed a full continuum of substance abuse treatment services including assessment, detoxification, outpatient and residential treatment. Among the most prominent of these services are the Women and Children’s Services residential treatment centers, the Addictions Receiving Facility (ARF) and the Men’s Residential program.

·        The Women and Children’s Services residential treatment centers for pregnant or postpartum women and their children operate in Orange, and Brevard Counties. These programs and their accompanying child care/development centers are nationally recognized as “model programs” for their outstanding service design and have been replicated throughout the State and Nation. 

·        The Addictions Receiving Facility (ARF) in Orlando provides medical stabilization and detoxification services to over 2,400 Central Florida residents each year and is a critical component of our community’s social service infrastructure. 

·        The Men’s Residential treatment program offers intensive therapy for men and women needing on-going treatment for alcohol and other substance use disorders. Combining traditional treatment approaches with progressive services including Adventure Therapy, Adult Residential strives to meet the individual needs of its diverse client population. 

Each of these residential programs, their outpatient counterparts, and various initiatives designed to meet emerging needs within our community, work together to complete the full continuum of care.

December of 2002 brought additional growth and change when The Center For Drug - Free Living, Inc. merged with CENTral Florida AIDS Unified Resources, Inc. (CENTAUR). Founded in 1986, CENTAUR was the first AIDS Service Organization (ASO) of its kind in the Central Florida area providing supportive services to HIV/AIDS clients in Lake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole Counties. CENTAUR began as a volunteer group of HIV/AIDS infected men who tried to support one another in their struggle to obtain medical assistance and to cope with the progressive and deadly nature of HIV/AIDS. The program has grown into a full-service ASO offering funded services by professionals to help address primary non-medical aspects of life with HIV. Today, CENTAUR provides assistance to individuals who are both infected with, or affected by, HIV/AIDS. Services include individual, group, couples and family mental health counseling and psychiatric services, provision of food, clothing and housing assistance and HIV/AIDS prevention education and outreach. CENTAUR is committed to providing factual information and education regarding HIV/AIDS and to communicate a message of compassion and support for those infected with or affected by HIV Spectrum Disease. Financial support for these services are provided by Ryan White Titles I, II, and IV, Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA), The Heart of Florida United Way, and Orange County Citizen’s Review Commission. Through this merger, all HIV/AIDS services previously provided by either The Center or by CENTAUR have been combined into one department under the organizational umbrella of The Center For Drug - Free Living, Inc. In order to recognize the historical significance of it predecessors, this new department continues to operate under the CENTAUR name.