Narconon 2003 Drug Rehabs History in the United States
OKLAHOMA
Narconon Arrowhead drug rehabilitation facility and International Training Center
Throughout 2003, Narconon Arrowhead staff continued to expand their reach into the community and send more newly drug-free students back to their homes. They grew to 150 staff and had an average of 150 students on the drug rehabilitation program each week.
The President’s office at Narconon was very busy getting telling the public about the benefits of the Narconon program. More than 25 million people read about Narconon Arrowhead in their local newspapers and another 30 million heard about it via television or radio shows.
The Arrowhead Drug Education team hit the road, giving presentations all across Oklahoma and surrounding states. This year, more than 34,000 people, mostly schoolchildren, heard the message of the dangers of substance abuse.
In September, Narconon Arrowhead participated in National Recovery Month by organizing a huge event in McAlester, the nearest town. Narconon presenters were joined by Priscilla Presley, the District Attorney and State Senator Richard Lerblance, all contributing to this year’s theme: Celebrating Health. After the presentations, an expo presented attendees with information from many different organizations focusing on drug recovery.
The Rev. McLaughlin, a leader in the AME Church in Houston, Texas, and his wife Cleo completed training at Narconon Arrowhead so that they could continue to expand the services of their drug recovery activity. Their AME Church in Houston is currently offering the Narconon First Step program and building a sauna so they can begin to offer the Narconon New Life Detoxification soon. The completion of the sauna will greatly increase their ability to help people recover from the damaging effects of substance abuse.
Another significant event at Narconon Arrowhead was the publication of the book Helping Someone Overcome Addiction. This profoundly educational book provides a family with the exact information they need to understand why someone became addicted to drugs and what has to happen to bring about a recovery.
CALIFORNIA
California has some of the largest Narconon centers in the world. In 2003, Narconon Northern California averaged 55 students every week and their staff had grown to 36. They were finally forced to find a second building to expand their activities. Their new facilities are located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. Narconon Northern California continues to fuel their expansion by sending staff to the International Training Centers in Oklahoma so they can become expert at their jobs.
In Southern California, the Narconon center in Newport Beach was also going through its own growing pains! Realizing they were outgrowing that facility, they bought a new property near San Diego. They had their grand opening in May 2003. Hundreds of people attended the event including local politicians and community leaders. Actress Nancy Cartwright also attended and delivered a strong message to the crowd on the importance of effective drug recovery. In 2003, Narconon Southern California averaged 73 students on the program, making it the second-largest Narconon in the world.
GREAT LAKES
While continuing her drug education presentations to classrooms in the Great Lakes area, the Executive Director of the Narconon drug education group also offered a Narconon First Step workshop to the community. The attendees wasted no time putting the information to use. Within two days of the workshop, attendees had already used what they learned to help two addicts withdraw from the drugs they were abusing.
SOUTHEAST US
Narconon drug rehab centers in Clearwater, Florida and Atlanta continued their stable growth and delivery. Between them, they were rehabilitating 35 students at a time. The Narconon in Georgia also increased their outreach activities, participating in a nine-week summer enrichment program for schoolchildren and organizing a large celebration in downtown Atlanta for Red Ribbon Week in October that was well attended by the members of the community and local officials.
US DRUG EDUCATION AND OUTREACH
In 2003, Narconon Drug Prevention and Education Los Angeles was the fastest-growing Narconon drug ed group in the world. Executive Director Tony Bylsma managed the expansion of drug education lecture delivery from 40,000 people in 2002 to more than 43,000 in 2003. While the group is located in Los Angeles, they been known to travel as far as Arizona and San Francisco to deliver their message.
And now for drug education activities that are completely different – the Ladder Guys take their huge inflatable ladder game to fairs and events all over California and to Washington State, Nevada, Arizona and Colorado. Every time the ladder game goes up, the Ladder Guys hand out “Ten Things Your Friends May Not Know about Drugs” booklets. In 2003, they reached out to more than 22,000 people with drug information. In their appearances, they have met with teachers, police officers, city council members and Boy Scout leaders.
New drug education and prevention groups sprang up in a number of US cities this year, including the new Seattle Narconon group that helped celebrate Red Ribbon Week by handing out drug education materials along the Seattle waterfront. And in Colorado, a new group began visiting schools to give anti-drug presentations.