Meet TomCat's Place Leadership

"...staying sober is tough, but you are tougher..."
Two people. Fifty years of sobriety. One mission. We're Tom and Cat, married since 1996. We both grew up in the Bronx, and we got sober in 2001 as husband and wife, just five months apart. And we're still together today. We know what early recovery feels like because we lived it, side by side. TomCat's Place grew out of that journey. We wanted to give men in early recovery a safe, structured, honest home, full of people who believe they can do this. When you live here, you're not a number. You're part of our family.

MEET Tom

THOMAS CARDONA | Co-Founder

Hi, my name is Tom. I'm an alcoholic and a drug addict, with a sober date of 8/17/2001. I grew up in the Bronx, New York, with my sister and mother who I never saw take a sip of alcohol. At the age of 16, I engaged with the wrong crowd and started abusing drugs and alcohol. At the age of thirty-three, I was tired of my lifestyle and put myself in a rehab called Promesa. I stayed there for a year and did very well. After completing the program, I enrolled in the Navy and was stationed in San Diego, CA. While in the Navy, I didn’t apply the tools I learned in rehab and relapsed. I stayed off drugs, but I started drinking again.

Two years later I was discharged and decided to stay in CA instead of returning to NY. I became a drug dealer and a user and found myself in a vicious cycle of going in and out of jail. Following my poor decisions and actions, I became homeless sleeping under a bridge.

As we say in rehab, I was “TIRED OF BEING TIRED". There was nothing left but jails, institutions, or death. If I were to be convicted of selling drugs one more time, I would have faced a twenty-year prison sentence.

Luckily, my sister was able to have my parole transferred to New York. I returned and was able to stay away from selling or using drugs, however, kept indulging in alcohol. In 2001, my wife decided to change her life and five months later I joined alongside her in a twelve-step program. I would often drink before going to the meetings, but as they say in the rooms, “...bring the body and the mind will follow..." - I thank God every day for the life that He has given me and the gift of sobriety.

I'm retired from a career in facility management. I am a contractor, a real estate developer, and a landlord. Being sober has changed my life. Somewhere along my journey I knew my calling was to use my “learnings through hardship” to one day own and operate a sober house, where I can be of service to others.

Founders Tomas Cardona & Catherine Caban-Cardona

MEET Cat

CATHERINE CABÁN-CARDONA | Co-Founder

Hi, my name is Cat, and I am an alcoholic with a sober date of 3/5/2001. My addiction to drugs and alcohol started at the age of fourteen and I abused them until age thirty-one. That is seventeen years of my life I can never get back. I grew up in the Bronx, New York, in a household where both parents were alcoholics and drug addicts. My dad was always in jail and my mom raised four kids while on welfare. I vowed never to follow in their footsteps. Although I never went on welfare or went to jail, I inherited the bad habits. I abused Cocaine, Marijuana and also became an alcoholic.

At age 17, I began working as a bartender and five years later, gained the mindset of “there must be something better” than this in my life. I decided to get my GED and go to college . With two part-time jobs, four college courses, and a drinking habit, I somehow managed to earn a GPA of 3.4. However, my disease of alcoholism progressed. I went from taking four classes down to one and started decreasing attendance at both school and work.

“MY LIFE BECAME UNMANAGEABLE!” On March 5, 2001, nothing traumatic happened other than I missed work again and felt it was the last straw. I hit a spiritual bottom!

I called a friend who was going to a twelve-step program, and she took me to my first meeting. After all the challenges I’ve endured, wonderful things happened along this journey of recovery. These “wonderful things” are the reason for my wanting to give back and open a sober house where others can do the same. I want to assist those who are struggling with maintaining a clean and sober lifestyle. The way this is possible for me to do is by accepting God’s gift of sobriety. For that I’m forever grateful.

Today I work at TomCat's Place, and I own and manage rental properties. Every day I thank God for the life I have now, and for the chance to help someone else find theirs.

EDITED - TomCats Place LLC - Founders Thomas and Catherine Caban-Cardona - #tomcatsplace #

Founders Thomas Cardona & Catherine Caban-Cardona

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TomCat's Place is not licensed or certified to provide substance use disorder treatment services.

TomCat's Place is a housing program in which individuals recovering from a substance use disorder voluntarily choose to live together in a supportive environment during their recovery.