OXNARD : Counseling Center to Hold Open House

An open house has been scheduled for the county’s newest drug and alcohol counseling center, which has quietly opened for business in south Oxnard.

The public is invited to attend the open house from 3 to 6 p.m. Wed nesday at the Oxnard Center, 2651 South C St.

The fourth community center to be opened by the county Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs, the Oxnard Center will serve nearby residents who previously have had to travel to Ventura for counseling.

“The largest number of people the department has served have historically been from this area,” said Betty De La Cruz, the coordinator of the Oxnard Center.

With a large shopping center located across the street, and a distinctive two-toned pink paint job, the new center is likely to attract a significant number of visitors, De La Cruz said.

“The people are right here,” she said, gesturing to the neighborhood that surrounds the center.

“They are more likely to come across us here by mistake, or a family member may come to us through schools or self-referrals,” De La Cruz said.

The Oxnard Center is the first of the county’s drug-counseling facilities to provide child care for clients who have children.

Like the other centers, it provides support groups, referral services, prevention classes and court-ordered drinking driver program classes.

Other services include an outreach program for people infected with the virus that causes AIDS, a methadone maintenance and recovery program, and parent-education classes.

Free, anonymous testing for the AIDS virus is available at the center.

The center offers support groups for people recovering from drug and alcohol addiction, relapse prevention, co-dependency groups for family members and 12-step meetings such as Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous.

For further information about the center or the open house, call 385-1885.