Mae Abraham hears Father Martin present his “Blackboard Talk” at an AA meeting in Baltimore, and it transforms her life. From the moment the speaker came out and said, “Hello, I’m Father Martin, and I’m an alcoholic,” Mae recalls, “I sensed that I was in the presence of someone who knew and understood me. Everyone had been describing my drinking in terms of a problem with morality: I was evil, sinful, immoral, women, don’t behave this way. That night hearing Father Martin’s Backboard Talk, I could see clearly – for the first time – that I did have a problem, but it wasn’t a problem with morality, it was a problem with a disease.”
Mae and Father developed a deep friendship, writing and calling one another often. No one could have predicted the effect the friendship that developed between Mae Abraham and Father Joseph Martin would have not only on Father Martin himself, but on the field of alcoholism. No one could have guessed that these two people, so different in background and temperament-one a Catholic priest from Baltimore, the other the daughter of a Baptist minister from the mountains of North Carolina-would have even become friends.
After speaking at the Fellowship by the Sea conference in Myrtle Beach, SC, Father and Mae begin openly discussing plans for a treatment facility on the plane ride back, initially naming the project “Ashley: The Possible Dream.” This leads to seven years of looking for funds and donors, as well as searching for the ideal location.
The Noble Foundation in Ardmore, Oklahoma, awards Ashley a $1 million matching grant. This funding enables the purchase of the estate on which Ashley is located.
After receiving the grant from the Noble Foundation, Father Martin and Mae Abraham travel around the country to raise an additional $1 million. Their efforts funded the renovation of Noble Hall, the main building.
On January 17, under the name Father Martin’s Ashley, our facility opens its doors with five patients and six staff members. Less than a week later, a new program is launched to involve the family members of those patients.
Ashley holds its ribbon-cutting ceremony, followed by a reception, with almost a thousand people in attendance. This building is dedicated to Sam and Mary Jane Noble in honor of their generous contributions.
With additional funds raised by the Ashley team and our supporters, the Carriage House is renovated and restored. Currently known as Carpenter Hall, it now serves as an inpatient men’s residence while also providing meeting rooms for the patient community.
The Ecumenical Chapel of the Holy Family is completed thanks to charitable contributions from donors. The space emphasizes a crucial tenet of Father Martin’s philosophy: that recovery is a spiritual process. On Christmas Eve, 1985, Father Martin holds his first of many midnight masses for Ashley patients. With a central position on campus, the chapel symbolizes the essential role of spirituality in recovery, providing a dedicated worship space for people of all faiths and beliefs.
Micki Thomas, together with Terry Gorsky, establish the first-ever relapse program at Ashley, signifying a turning point in the substance use disorder treatment field and Ashley’s growth.
Ashley is awarded a generous pledge of $2.5 million from UST. The funds were given over a five-year period in order to build Bantle Hall.
Thanks to generous donations by UST and Jamie Carraway, Ashley purchases additional acreage to grow the campus by an additional 42 acres.
Ashley inaugurates the official Family Center in a beautifully restored and renovated cottage. Family members of Ashley patients now have a dedicated meeting place for the first time.
Ashley breaks ground on our newest building, now known as Bantle Hall.
In order to more effectively address the unique issues children face when they deal with addiction within their family environment, Ashley launches its first adolescent-focused recovery program.
Already in use in 1991, Bantle Hall is now dedicated to Lou and Gini Bantle for their generous donations. Archbishop William H. Keeler of Baltimore blesses the building, and Betty Ford appears as the keynote speaker. Ashley can now accommodate 80 patients, thanks to his generous contribution.
Abraham Hall, named to honor Mae and Tommy Abraham and Father Martin, is constructed through numerous donations. A courtyard donated by board member Mac Borg and dedicated to Leonard Dahl, Ashley’s former program director and CEO, now ties together the entire Ashley campus.
Ashley purchases an additional two-acre site at Ashley’s front gate for a future expansion.
Ashley acquires the adjoining property, Swan Creek Golf Country Club, an addition which represents 106 acres of growth for the Ashley campus.
On March 9, 2009, we had to say goodbye to our beloved co-founder, Father Martin. He is greatly missed, but his memory and philosophy live on.
Ashley’s first outpatient center opens in 2015 at the Upper Chesapeake Medical Center. Now located next to The Klein Family Harford Crisis Center in Bel Air, MD, the center serves patients better supported by non-residential treatment.
Ashley opens Skip’s Hall to address the evolving needs of the 21st-century patient, now facilitating a seamless admission flow. The building is dedicated to a former patient and the family who donated to the building.
Ashley opens the first Emerging Adult Men’s Extended Care Program.
Ashley adopts the name Ashley Addiction Treatment to better represent our innovations and advancements in substance use disorder treatment.
Ashley opens its second outpatient center in Elkton, MD, to expand access to care.
On August 23, 2019, our exceptional co-founder, Mae Abraham, the heart of Ashley, passes away. Her dedication and commitment to helping patients overcome substance use disorder will continue to live on.
Ashley opens its first women’s extended care house in Bel Air, MD, providing a dedicated space for women in recovery.
Alex Denstman, MBA, and Greg Hobelmann, MD, MPH, signed on as co-CEOs and presidents, a rarely-seen leadership structure that echoes the foundational era of Father Martin and Mae Abraham.
The Clubhouse by Ashley opens virtually in July 2021 to support Harford County teens and their families struggling with or impacted by SUD. Freshly renovated, the physical space in Aberdeen, MD, has served as a welcoming space for the free, fun and safe after-school and summer program since July 2022.