Jay Maloney had the good life — the American Dream — until his demons took it away.

“I was a computer business analyst. I made a lot of money and never wanted for anything. I was also a drug and alcohol user for about 40 years,” Maloney said as he sat on the couch in Harmony House, a substance abuse recovery home for men in Sedona.

About eight months ago, Maloney sought help.

“I lost my house, my family, my summer home, my boat, four cars — my finances turned from fat and flush to nothing,” Maloney said. “Without [the Arizona Health Care Cost Contaminant System] and food stamps, I don’t know what I’d do.”

Maloney came to Harmony House to find a place to live for 30 days, but found out it was good for his recovery. The No. 1 rule of the house is to be clean and sober. The No. 2 rule that a resident must be actively engaged in 12-step meetings.

“To maintain sobriety has to be respected and followed,” Maloney said.

Today, Maloney fills his days searching for a job, attending 12-step meetings and watching some television. He expects to land a position within the next two weeks.

Harmony House is based on an Oxford House model. It’s not a treatment center, but it is a clean and sober place for men in recovery to live. The five men who currently make up the household have been through a detox treatment program and have either lost their homes or are estranged from their families.

“It’s a self-governed, self-sustained place with only a few rules that translate into healthy boundaries,” house liaison Mark Pope said. Pope travels to Sedona from the Phoenix area often and has served as a minister at Unity Church of Sedona, which sponsors Harmony House.

“This house is our primary charitable work in the community,” Pope said. He is one of the founding members who got the house started.

Pope said the rules are simple, and there are only five. In addition to being clean and sober, and attending 12-step meetings, each man must pay his rent on time, work hard to get along with the other residents and maintain not only his own room but the common areas. Everyone participates in the workings of the house.

“The last piece is we have a weekly house meeting,” Pope said. “Something we don’t do here is get involved in social, political or religious issues.”

There are no exceptions to the rules, especially the first one. If a man is found to be drinking alcohol or taking drugs, the other house members ask him to leave.

“On a rare occasion, we’ve had to ask someone to leave. When you fall from this place, there’s not far to go. This is a last place before the street,” Maloney said.

Before a man can move into the house, he is interviewed to find out if he is following the basic rules of sobriety.

“They have to show they possess a real desire and determination to stay clean and sober,” Pope said.

Bob, who did not want to give his last name to protect his family, came to Harmony House after he got out of treatment for alcoholism. He needed a place to live for a while, although his family is in the area.

“Being here has taught me how to keep living sober, and live my life as a mature person instead of a little kid,” Bob said. “I’m in school now to get a bachelor’s degree to become a chemical dependency counselor.”

Another man is only 20 years old and came from another state. He discovered his family was dysfunctional and if he stayed he would only go downhill with drugs and alcohol. He boarded a train and came to Sedona. He found a job right away — and Harmony House.

“I’m doing so great here, and I’m glad I’m out of where I was,” he said. “Being here I’m learning a lot of things, and taking better care of myself. It’s not all recovery.”

All of the men agreed the 12-step meetings help keep them on track, and give them hope for a brighter future. Pope said an interesting phenomenon about the meetings is that they are a strong, spiritual tool.

“To grab a hold of Narcotics Anonymous or Alcoholics Anonymous is to have a spiritual basis, a power higher than yourself,” Pope said. He is also a participant in the 12-step program. “What we think is the core addition to all addictions is looking for something missing in your life. Often that something is a higher power.”

Before he got involved with 12-step meetings, Maloney was an agnostic who thought a person made his or her own life. He has changed his mind.

“I discovered that without a higher power to give me strength, I wasn’t going to be able to do this by myself,” Maloney said.

Harmony House is the only Oxford House in Arizona. The first Oxford House was established in 1975 in Maryland.

Oxford House is a nonprofit, publicly supported corporation. Houses are established for men or women and there are houses which accept women with children. There are more than 1,200 houses in the United States. The basic purpose is to prevent relapse.

“Before there was AA, there was Oxford,” Pope said.

The Harmony House recently received a donation from an unexpected source: The Sedona branch of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northern Arizona. The children involved in the program sold hot dogs and hamburgers at the Celebration of Spring and raised $530. Sedona branch Director Chris Quasula and some of the children presented a check to Pope at the Greater Sedona Substance Abuse Coalition meeting Wednesday, April 28.

“Like everybody, they needed money so we had a fundraiser for them. It was a way we could give back to the community,” Quasula said. “All the food was donated by [the Methamphetamine Advisory Task Force] and we cooked it.”