Counsel of Catholic Charities and Daily Faith Guide Veteran’s Sobriety

Kevin wouldn’t recommend coming to Catholic Charities of Long Island’s addiction treatment services outpatient clinic in Hampton Bays the way he did. His presence was court-mandated after his third DWI arrest.

He now considers himself fortunate because he is aware he could have gone to jail or even died. Instead, Kevin wound up getting help to put himself on a much better path. “The help is out there, all you have to do is open the door,” he said.

Kevin spoke with Danielle Campbell, director of development and communications for Catholic Charities of Long Island, during an interview for an episode of “You Did It for Me” on Catholic Faith Network.

He credited AA and clinicians at Catholic Charities, especially Bethany Hogan, who is now clinic supervisor. His first AA sponsor led him through the 12-Step program.

Kevin, now 65, is a veteran with the Air National Guard, who flew helicopters out of the base in Westhampton Beach. He served in the Gulf War, in Iraq and Kuwait, and in Afghanistan. “I wanted to serve my country, and I ended up doing it.”

His flying career initially started with Pan Am, which offered helicopter service to Kennedy from locales in the metropolitan area.

Kevin admits to family struggles brought on by his problems with alcohol. He couldn’t drink while away flying, so he felt like it was time “to have a party” when he returned home.

His wife, to whom he is no longer married, was working hard to raise their three kids and hold down a full-time job. “She needed a husband, and she got a mess,” Kevin said.

His path to sobriety has not always been smooth. He suffered a one-day relapse three years into his treatment at Catholic Charities. As a condition of his probation, he would receive regular visits from a probation officer. When she arrived that day, he let her into his house. He lives very close to the Catholic Charities clinic, and when the officer left, he walked right across the church parking lot and into the clinic for help.

While Kevin is aware the circumstances of his one-day relapse may sound “hard to believe,” the visit from the probation officer and his quick trip to Catholic Charities were vitally important to his long-term recovery. If he hadn’t moved fast, he said, “I would have gone back to drinking every day. It could have killed me.” At Catholic Charities, he admitted taking “a wrong turn” and sought to get back “on the path.”

Some people can drink responsibly, but Kevin realizes that’s not possible for him. He’s grateful for his sobriety and has worked diligently over the past three years to maintain it. “You should throw everything at it,” Kevin said. “You have to decide you want sobriety.”

He is a frequent presence around St. Rosalie’s Church. The lifelong Catholic attends daily Mass six days a week, missing only on Sundays because he doesn’t like crowds. He also is a frequent visitor to the parish’s Meditation Garden.

With 190 clients, the highest number in some time, Bethany Hogan says the Catholic Charities outpatient addiction treatment clinic in Hampton Bays plays a “very important” role on Long Island’s East End, where addiction services are not plentiful. Some people travel all the way from Montauk. Many are referred as a condition of their probation or parole, or because of other issues, but most stay after the mandate expires, she said.

The clinic, which operates in a parish building, enjoys a good relationship with St. Rosalie’s. Hogan was enthusiastic about a program begun this year to reach out to family members and loved ones of existing clients. “That’s something I’m passionate about,” she said.

Hogan, a 10-year Catholic Charities employee came to the Hamptons Bays clinic as an intern and for the past year has served as clinic supervisor. “We’re very person-centered. We tailor the treatment program to the specific person,” she said.

Kevin is one of her clients, having progressed to Continued Care, and meets with her monthly. His religious faith is so significant that it factors in his treatment plan. “Going to Mass every day is structure,” Hogan says. “He brings up part of his ethics and his morals, having to do with his faith. So being in recovery and having that faith, having that extra hope, I think it absolutely helps him.”

Kevin doubted that he would return to sobriety after his relapse, and several times during the interview expressed gratitude for Hogan and Catholic Charities. Three years later, he says, “When somebody listens to my story and says you’ve done good, I’m speechless.”