Drug treatment center for clergy sets fund-raiser Facility aids Catholic clerics

BANGOR – The Guest House, a substance abuse treatment center for Roman Catholic clergy, will hold its second annual Bishop’s Reception and fund-raiser at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 13, at the Bangor Motor Inn.

Founded in 1956, the Guest House has cared for 6,000 Catholic clergy, as well as men and women in religious life suffering from alcoholism or other chemical addictions and related problems. It has two treatment centers, one in Rochester, Minn., for priests, deacons and brothers; the other in Lake Orion, Mich., for women devoted to religious life.

Twenty-nine graduates of Guest House continue their ministries in Maine.

The main difference between secular treatment programs and Guest House’s regimen is the length of stay. Most treatment plans last between 28 and 50 days. The Guest House program for religious leaders lasts 100 days.

Last year, the Rev. Clement D. Thibodeau, now retired, described his experience at the Guest House in 1980. He credited the program with restoring his health as well as his faith, and described substance abuse as a “spiritual and physical disease” that isolates clergy not only from their congregations and colleagues, but also from their belief systems.

“More than people in other professions, clergy members have a deep sense of shame about their substance abuse,” Thibodeau told the Bangor Daily News shortly before last year’s Guest House fund-raiser. “It takes a long time to overcome that and accept treatment. Guest House also isolates those in treatment from their religious superiors. While superiors are kept informed of a patient’s progress, direct communication is not allowed.”

Guest House’s client success rate is significantly higher than traditional lay treatment centers, according to information provided by the organization. Studies show that 90 percent of Guest House graduates continue to be sober two years out of treatment; 85 percent, after 10 years; and 75 percent maintain lifetimes of sobriety.

The Rev. Tom Zedar of San Antonio Catholic Church in Port Charlotte, Fla., will be the guest speaker at Thursday’s event. Bishop Joseph J. Gerry and Bishop Michael R. Cote of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, which comprises all of the state, are expected to attend the fund raising event.

For information on the event and programs at Guest House, call Patricia Zawadzki at (800) 626-6910 or e-mail her at development @guesthouse.org or visit the organization’s Web site at www.guesthouse.org.