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St. Joseph’s Hosts
Russian Addiction Specialists

Guest from House of Hope on the Hill located in St. Petersburgh, Russia. Director Dr. Svetlana Moseeva, Translator Alexander Alexandrov, Senior Counselor Sergei Agafonov, Board member and well known Russian artist Dmitri Shagin. St. Petersburg, Russia’s The House of Hope on the Hill is the country’s only free alcohol treatment center that uses the principles of Alcoholics Anonymous in a 28-day program. The Center has served approximately 2,500 people from 110 cities across Russia as well as patients from a few of the former Soviet states.

To further strengthen their programs, three addiction specialists; Board member and well known Russian artist Dmitri Shagin, Senior Counselor Sergei Agafonov, the Center’s Director, Dr. Svetlana Moseeva, and their irreplaceable translator, Alexander Alexandrov will spend the next ten days studying St. Joseph’s Rehabilitation Center’s recovery programs and business practices. The group is particularly interested in the Family Services Session which serves as an intervention technique to educate family members and the resident about the destructiveness of the disease.

The visit is part of an exchange program begun ten years ago through the impetus of Fr. Bernie Palka, SA of St. Christopher’s Inn, located in Garrison, New York (Putnam County ) the sister agency of St. Joseph’s. The exchange provides American specialists a similar opportunity to travel to Russia and to learn from their colleagues in that country.

According to Forbes Magazine, Russian male life expectancy is 59, the lowest of any developed country. Further, in the former Soviet Union, one-third of premature deaths were alcohol related. In one city, nearly half of all premature deaths were attributed to habitual binge drinking and consuming “non-beverage alcohol” such as cologne.

“In Russia we don’t have any institutions like St. Joseph’s. For us to develop, we need a model. Our group is here for the third time and we have significantly expanded our knowledge. We are very grateful for the opportunity that is being provided to us,” says Svetlana Moseeva, the House of Hope on the Hill’s Director.

The House of Hope on the Hill, founded in 1997 by American Louise Bantle who himself struggled with alcohol while Chief Executive of U.S. Tobacco.

St. Joseph’s Family Counselor Beckie O’Neil says of the visit, “The disease is everywhere. There are no borders. Having our guests come all the way from Russia helps to validate that what we’re doing is truly effective.”


Guests from St. Petersburgh, Russia with staff from St. Joseph's Rehabilitation Center - 11/2007

Guests from St. Petersburgh, Russia with staff from
St. Joseph's Rehabilitation Center - 11/2007

Pictured Top Row R-L:
Sergei Agafonov - Senior Counselor House of Hope,
Joe Tyler - Family Councelor SJRC,
Dmitri Shagin - Board member and well known Russian artist House of Hope.

Bottom Row R-L:
Robert Ross, CEO SJRC,
Bernadette Burns - Family Program Director SJRC,
Beckie O'Niel Family Councelor,
Shannon Dora - Family Program secreatry,
Dr. Svetlana Moseeva -Director House of Hope, and
their irreplaceable translator, Alexander Alexandrov,
Fred Lichtenwalter - Information's Systems and
Brother Alan Lemay of SJRC.