Vanderburgh Sober Living (VSL) is a membership community for recovery home operators, and we are excited to equip you to launch and lead best-in-class homes as a VSL Chartered Operator. You keep full independence while gaining proven standards, one-on-one support, and practical tools that help you launch and sustain a safe, compliant home.
Discover how becoming a VSL Chartered Operator helps you open and sustain compliant and profitable recovery housing with confidence.
Our members are dedicated recovery housing professionals from Maine to California, united by a shared desire to create profound community impact and build profitable sober living businesses.
VSL is the largest network of Level II recovery housing in the US.
Our leadership brings decades of experience in recovery housing, real estate, and social enterprise. Dr. Hunter T. Foote and the VSL team ensure every operator has the tools and insight to succeed.
Dr. Foote, author of 14 books, is a nation leader in recovery housing.
For over a decade, VSL has built systems that make recovery housing more effective, transparent, and sustainable—empowering operators to focus on what matters most.
VSL systems offer a simple, repeatable, scalable process.
Discover how VSL Training equips recovery housing leaders with real-world tools, coaching, and on-site learning to launch successful sober homes.
Recovery housing rebuilds communities, reunites families, and saves lives. Recovery housing plays a vital role in supporting individuals on their path to long-term recovery. It provides a structured, supportive environment that fosters stability, accountability, and community, all of which are crucial for sustained recovery.
Recovery housing offers a stable, structured environment where guests can focus on rebuilding their lives. Free from the triggers and instability of their past, individuals have the opportunity to develop healthy habits, regain their independence, and rediscover their sense of purpose. Recovery housing is not just a temporary solution—it’s a launchpad for long-term recovery.
Recovery housing is guided by those who understand the challenges and rewards of the recovery journey—peers and allies committed to supporting others. It represents an opportunity for guests to grow into peer mentorship roles, and for House Mentors to even become operators of their own homes. This peer-driven leadership fosters a compassionate, empathetic environment where everyone has the chance to thrive. With access to the right tools and resources, operators lead with confidence, ensuring both the guests and the recovery community can flourish.
Part One: Leadership Academy
Learn how to launch, certify, and lead a successful recovery home through a focused, nine-part expert training series.
Part Two: Mentorship
Turn your vision into reality with step-by-step coaching from seasoned recovery housing leaders.
Part Three: Leadership Network
Tap into the VSL community for hands-on training, proven resources, and trusted partners to accelerate your success.
Your vision of opening a recovery home is within reach—let’s make it real.
Running a recovery home on your own can be challenging. Without the right support, operators often face burnout, inefficiencies, and difficulty maintaining standards. That’s why supported operators are more successful in sustaining effective recovery housing. Here’s what operator support looks like:
Get your free copy of Path to Purposeful Recovery Housing—a practical guide to building homes that change lives and last. Learn the systems and strategies that unite purpose, sustainability, and community impact.
Written by Dr. Hunter T. Foote, it distills years of hands-on experience from the Vanderburgh Sober Living network into actionable insights for recovery housing leaders and developers who want to align mission and profitability with impact.
Our community of Chartered Operators represents passion, dedication, and excellence in the field of sober living. Our members are how the mission of VSL becomes a reality. Here’s who is involved:
The Vanderburgh Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) Charitable Foundation based in Webster, Massachusetts. The Foundation’s mission is to ensure access to a supportive, affordable, and sustainable home for each person on a recovery journey. This is brought to life in four ways:
Vanderburgh Sober Living™ (VSL) is a membership organization for recovery home operators who join the VSL community with a passion for recovery housing and commit to upholding high standards of care, ensuring all Chartered Homes offer consistency to guests and meet the best practices in our field.
What is a “Charter”?
A Charter grants membership in the VSL Community. The Foundation commits to support member-Operators, and members commit to operate with integrity and excellence.
Chartered Operators join the VSL community from a variety of backgrounds and levels of experience. You don’t have to currently operate a home to become a Chartered Operator; most of our members join before they’ve opened their first home and work with us to learn how to open their first home.
Charter Candidates join us from a variety of backgrounds—recovery professionals, real estate entrepreneurs, nonprofit leaders, and mission-driven individuals alike. Each candidate completes a guided consultation process to ensure they are prepared to open and operate exceptional recovery housing with confidence.
