Gatehouse Academy is really excited to announce the release of a book titled, Underbelly; The Palm Beach No One Talks About.  The book is written and photographed by David Geliebter, the father of a Gatehouse Academy graduate.  The book shows another side to the wealthy community of Palm Beach, FL.  David interviews a number of individual's that are homeless, suffer from drug addiction and/or victims of domestic violence.  This self published book cost a total of $40,000 to produce and all proceeds go to helping homeless and addicted people in the area.

The book shares the stories of a group of individual's who have found themselves homeless, drug addicted and/or victims of domestic abuse in an area otherwise known for its wealth.

To listen to an interview with David Geliebter, please click here. (MP3 7.5 MB)

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This story highlights the important role many parents play in the recovery of a young adult suffering from addiction.  Michelle is a recovering drug addict, she started drinking at the age of 13 and soon found herself addicted to crystal meth.  In three short years she couldn't live without the drug.  Her mother was able to intervene and stop the process of addiction.  Michelle now thanks her mother for the gift of a new life and the continued love and support.  It shows that a strong support system can allow hope for the addict to recover.  Also mentioned in the article is the importance of educating families on addiction.  At Gatehouse Academy we empasize the healing of the whole family by providing Family Therapy Workshops throughout the residents stay.  It allows the family the opportunity to show the same love and support that Michelle recieved.  The Workshops also educate families on addiction and the recovery process.

"Families need to support each other and love each other and get help for the whole family,"

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Here's some news from Palatka, Florida.  There, drug addicts and alcoholics are being given an alternative to jail.  The article discusses three recent graduates of the Adult Drug Court program.  By completing the Drug Court they were offered a solution.  An alternative to serving jail time where there is little hope of recieving the tools necessary to recover.  They have achieved sobriety and been given their freedom back after going through the structure of the Drug Court program.  Many of Gatehouse's residents also experience the same freedom after completing the highly structured year long program as an alternative to jail. 

“The point is to break the cycle,” Yingst said. “Once you begin treatment you begin to be given the tools that help."

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This is another story of an individual dedicating his life to helping others after recovering from a hopeless state of mind and body.  Rickie battled with alcoholism for years before entering recovery.  This article describes the bottom he dropped to and his struggles along the way.  The feelings and experiences he describes are similar to many of the residents at Gatehouse Academy.  This story is a great description of the hopelessness of Alcoholism and the incredible transformation that occurs through 12 step recovery. 

"Part of me knew I was an alcoholic" but denial kept surfacing, Jones added. "For about 12 beers, I'd hate myself. But after 14 beers, I wouldn't care anymore. After 30 beers, I wouldn't remember."

Read his story…

There are plans to start a new drug rehab in Salem, OR.  The program will be for women and will allow them to bring their children.  There is definitely a need for this.  These types of programs are few and far between. Sadly, women often lose custody of their children when entering drug rehab.

Treatment for drug addiction often tears families apart, sending children to foster care while mothers undergo court-ordered rehab.

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The following article talks about a recovering drug addict who has dedicated his life to helping others that struggle with addiction.  The principle of one addict helping another addict is part of the 12 Step Recovery approach that we use at Gatehouse Academy.  This is because carrying the message of recovery is as equally beneficial to the person carrying it as it is to the person receiving it.

Probation officer Mike Carley said, “It’s absolutely fantastic for me to see somebody who’s been through the mill with drugs coming out the other end and doing something really positive like this.

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