If you live around the Triangle, you have likely seen TROSA Moving trucks around. You may even have moved with them, prepared for Christmas at a TROSA Tree Lot, shopped for furniture at TROSA Thrift Store, or had TROSA Lawn Care take care of your yard. You may not have known that TROSA is not somebody’s name, it is an acronym for Triangle Residential Options for Substance Abusers, and those businesses are not only the primary way the organization pays for the services it provides, but they also are an important part of the treatment itself.
Kevin McDonald founded TROSA in 1994 after getting help with his own substance abuse problem at San Francisco’s Delancey Street Foundation.
Sutherland Institute recently highlighted The Other Side Academy (TOSA), a similar program in Salt Lake City. In August 2017, state and local government began a significant effort with community groups to improve safety and reduce homelessness in the Rio Grande district of the city. They expect TOSA to be part of the long-term answer.
