Man recovering from alcoholism builds garden to thank City Mission, community
Adrianne Uphold/Observer-Reporter
Tom Rexa stands in front of the garden he built for City Mission in Washington.
Adrianne Uphold/Observer-Reporter
A pepper plant in the garden is beginning to sprout.
Adrianne Uphold/Observer-Reporter
Tom Rexa painted a rock and placed it in his garden to thank City Mission.
For 30 years, Tom Rexa battled with alcoholism and misusing drugs.
After going in and out of rehab for several years, Rexa found City Mission, a Christ-centered rehabilitative homeless shelter, and started his path to sobriety.
He recently built a garden, three weeks after having a knee replaced, outside of City Mission in gratitude for the mission helping him.
“I became addicted to drugs and alcohol at a very young age, and I continued on until I was 48,” Rexa said. “That was the first time I ever tried getting clean, in 2014.”
The 53-year-old tried different rehab programs around Pennsylvania, each time getting sober and leaving.
“I tried painkillers, once a week, which turned into every day,” Rexa said. “It destroyed my life all over again. I went into major depression and anxiety. I watched my life deteriorate so I let myself go with it.”
Rexa said when he started to get depressed, he would close all of the curtains in his apartment and sit in darkness.
“I would isolate myself, close the curtains and lock the door. I didn’t talk to anyone for a very long time during those periods.”
He admitted himself to a treatment center for a few months. After stabilizing himself through that program, Rexa went home. He then fell back into depression.
He admitted he contemplated suicide.
“I didn’t know what to do,” Rexa said. “I thought about killing myself. I just couldn’t follow through. My head was destroyed. I would beat myself down about my past problems.”
After reaching out to one of the staff members at City Mission, Rexa was admitted into the program that same day. He has been sober for 13 months.
“This place saved my life,” Rexa said. “They had patience with me. They gave me time, space, let me think out my issues. I’m very grateful to them for that.”
A few weeks ago, Rexa was sitting outside the City Mission men’s shelter looking at a pile of mulch. He decided to build something that was going to benefit the entire community.
“I sat there and stared at it (the mulch). Then I looked at the pile of rocks we had, the mulch, my wheels in my brain started going, and before you know it this is the end result.”
That end result consists of a garden filled with different types of vegetables such as tomatoes, cucumbers, pumpkins, peppers and more. There are sunflowers planted that are supposed to be around 3 feet tall. There is a cross and heart in the garden made out of rocks.
It took him about two weeks to finish the garden. He worked 10-hour days.
“I was dedicated to finish it,” Rexa said. “I saw how it could help the residents. Maybe this might inspire others to do projects around here. But I’m happy to just see my friends here be able to look at it instead of a pile of dirt.”
Some of the plants in the garden were donated by Stimmell’s Greenhouse.
Rexa hopes to be out of City Mission in three months. He has started working again and wants to get an apartment in the near future.