Keaton Douglas (left) and Lindsay Schlegel

Two local Catholics win award for ‘Road to Hope’ book

The Catholic Media Association (CMA) recently honored the book “The Road to Hope: Responding to the Crisis of Addic-tion,” written by Keaton Douglas with Lindsay Schlegel. The two local Catholics won a second-place award for their book in its “Parish Ministry/Parish Life” category at CMA’s annual conference in Atlanta in June.

Published last year, “The Road to Hope” is an extension of iTHIRST, a certification-based addiction and recovery ministry training that addresses a critical but neglected part of recovery: spirituality.

iTHIRST was developed in 2018 in the Paterson Diocese to equip the body of Christ — clergy, religious, and laity — to understand and minister to people suffering from addiction. 

Today, iTHIRST partners with Seton Hall  Uni-versity to offer this Spiritual Compan-ionship training year round through their Division of Continuing Edu-cation and Pro-fessional Studies.

Douglas, a counselor and frequent speaker in Catholic spirituality and addiction, is executive director and founder of iTHIRST. It’s an acronym for “The Healing Initiative — Recovery, Spirituality, and Twelve Steps.” It’s a ministry of the Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity at the Shrine of St. Joseph in the Stirling neighborhood of Long Hill Township.

“Winning this award is a significant milestone for our iTHIRST ministry. With this acknowledgment, we will be able to extend our reach even further, touching the lives of more individuals and families who are grappling with the devastating effects of substance use disorder and other types of addictions,” said Douglas of St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Sandyston. 

“iTHIRST’s mission to provide hope and healing is more crucial than ever. This recognition will help amplify our efforts to bring comfort and support to those in need.”

The Beacon, the newspaper of the Paterson Diocese, and the diocesan Communications Office won four CMA awards at the conference. They included Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney being named podcaster of the year (third place) in his inaugural year as podcast host of “Beyond The Beacon” and being awarded best Instagram account for a diocesan bishop.

Douglas wrote “The Road to Hope” with Schlegel, a freelance writer, and editor. She wrote “Don’t Forget to Say Thank You: And Other Parenting Lessons That Brought Me Closer to God” and hosts the podcast “Quote Me with Lindsay Schlegel.” She is a parishioner of St. Vincent de Paul Parish, also in the Stirling neighborhood of Long Hill Township.

Today, more than 350 certified iTHIRST Spiritual Companions work in parishes, re-entry programs, correctional and treatment facilities, hospital chaplaincies, Native American reservations, and Catholic schools across 45 states and in seven countries, including Nigeria and South Africa.

Published by Our Sunday Visitor, “The Road to Hope” is available through all major booksellers.

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