Hope for the Addicted

Every now and then, a video comes along which shows you something about the world we live in which is so completely unexpected, so wonderful and so unbelievable as to defy credibility. Desmond Smith's documentary, Hope for the Addicted introduces us to San Patrignano, an Italian therapeutic village of 2,000 souls where everyone, including the doctors, the architects, the cooks and the patients, are all recovering drug addicts. In 1978, Vincenzo Muccioli, a wealthy landowner in Rimini, Italy, turned his country estate into a non-profit commune which is part trade college, part boot camp and part fine arts academy where ex-addicts can fill the void in their lives once occupied by drugs. San Patrignano has never taken a penny from any government or institution and has realized a $2 million profit from the sale of restored furniture, art and thoroughbred horses. This riveting video follows the life of Paul Fusca, an $800 per day heroin addict, from the streets of Toronto where he robs banks and convenience stores to the countryside of Italy where he kicks his habit and learns a trade. Addicts are enrolled free of charge for a period of 3 to 5 years, quite different from the 21 day clinic experience common in the U.S. At San Patrignano, enrollees have 60 jobs to choose from, all with no pay. "Your work is your recovery", says Andre Muccioli, who runs the clinic today. This amazing video demonstrates that our current thinking about drug addicts and the promise of their recovery may need a transfusion from the minds of real, caring benefactors in our midst. There is hope for the addicted, and it's called San Patrignano. Remarkable and highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (R. Ray)