Nearly 10 years ago, a friend told Sal Guli III about an opening at Talbot House in Bohemia. He was out of work and looking to leave the restaurant business because he was tired of “being around people who were drinking or on something.”

At the time Guli had been sober for 10 years and looked at the open job as an opportunity to give back to others walking the same road he traveled. Serving as cook and kitchen manager turned out to be a “godsend,” both for the work Guli has done, and for the lives he’s touched.

Talbot House, a residential stabilization center in Bohemia, is one of two addiction treatment centers run by Catholic Charities of Long Island and licensed by the New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports. His job responsibilities include everything from ordering, shopping, cleaning and cooking the food to creating menus. Many clients are debilitated when they enter Talbot House and “haven’t eaten in a long time,” Guli explained, and it often takes them a few days before they are interested in food.

When they come around, his menus are filled with hearty staples like spaghetti and meatballs, baked chicken, chicken salad and egg salad, along with stews and casseroles. A recent lunch offering featured cheeseburgers with a three-bean salad and apple pie for dessert. A pot of the soup of the day is always on the stovetop, ready to be quickly warmed and served. 
Good nutrition is an important element in recovery, which leads to feeling better and moving on quicker, he said. Guli shared his Thanksgiving menu with Danielle Campbell, development and communications director of Catholic Charities of Long Island, in a segment on CFN Live on Thanksgiving Day.

A self-described loner in childhood, Guli turned to drugs and alcohol at a young age. At an outpatient clinic two decades ago, he encountered two “fantastic” counselors who told him he faced a stark choice: life or death. He chose life. With help from his family, Guli discovered it was time for him “to stop, grow and become a better person.” He and his wife of 29 years, Jean, are the parents of an adult son and daughter.

Talbot House is named for Matt Talbot, a native of Ireland who struggled before pledging to give up alcohol. From that point on, he lived as a devout Catholic and is now the patron for those who struggle with alcohol and other addictions. 
Talbot House is one of only two stand-alone residential stabilization centers for adults on Long Island, and the only one in Suffolk County, that is not associated with hospitals or other long-term levels of care. The community-based center’s sole purpose is to stabilize clients’ withdrawal symptoms through medication-assisted treatment and counseling, and bridge them to the next level of care, said Jennifer Perciavalle, director of addiction treatment services for CCLI.

Guli said it can take a while before clients talk about themselves in his presence. Once they are inclined, he has “open ears and an open mind” and tells them about his own experiences. His advice to those considering their prospective recovery is two-fold: they have to give in and understand the follow-through will last for the rest of their lives.
“Heartbreaking” is how Guli describes seeing a client exit Talbot House before they have a clear plan to better themselves. Conversely, it’s “heartwarming” when an alumnus returns with a good amount of sobriety under their belt. At monthly alumni meetings, they speak with current clients and “come back to see employees and talk to them. Sometimes they’ll give a call to tell everybody they are doing good…to thank us for all we’re doing.”

Talbot House staff members work hard to help clients “to be better and move on.” After 10 years, Guli has made many friends among his co-workers. "We are a good work family,” he said. Staff members working closely with clients are experienced professionals Guli would trust “with my family’s lives now.”

As a ministry of the Roman Catholic Church, Catholic Charities of Long Island is inspired by the Gospel message that every human life is sacred.