WHEN Conrad Cooper embarked on a journey to equip addicts with the right recovery tools, his main objective was to get families and the community involved in the recovery process.
The founder and director of Project Exodus, a non-profit organisation he started 22 years ago, run from the Anthem Church in Durban North, says that he started the centre to help addicts fight the scourge.
He said that some of the addictions the centre helps with are drug addiction, gaming, pornography, prescription medication addiction and many others.
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“We strongly support the need for a community-based recovery process, and that’s why we started Project Exodus. Our groups speak to the families, the supporters and ones who are trying to bring their loved ones into recovery, and we also speak to the guys who are trying to get into recovery. If the family is there first, it makes the outcome better,” said Cooper.
Cooper and his team have been working tirelessly, guiding addicts on their journey to recovery and also equipping other churches, organisations and recovery centres with the necessary training to reach the same objective.
“We have trained about 480 churches and related organisations in the last three years. We have about seventy groups which run on a national basis, and we are starting up internationally with a group up and running in Ireland, and soon, in the United Kingdom. We also have about fifteen groups in Durban and online groups that run seven days a week.”
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“Changing the culture of addiction requires real dedication, and churches are embracing what we’re doing. If we work in a recovery-orientated community and where the community is collectively pushing towards a culture of recovery, it’s much easier for addicts to swing into that space,” he said.
Cooper added that as they are self-funded, finances are always a pressing issue. He calls for the community to get involved in any way they can from a public relations and social media perspective to help promote what they do.
The internationally acclaimed centre, boasting a success rate of between 80 and 90 percent, holds group meetings at Anthem Church every evening at 18:00.
