The Crossroads Centre is a

substance-abuse rehabilitation Drug rehabilitation is the process of medical or psychotherapeutic treatment for dependency on psychoactive substances such as alcohol, prescription drugs, and street drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, heroin or amphetamines. The general inte ...

centre for drug and alcohol addiction located on the Caribbean island of Antigua in Antigua and Barbuda. It was founded with support from guitarist/singer Eric Clapton in 1998. He has been assisting with its funding by organising the annual

Crossroads Guitar Festival The Crossroads Guitar Festival is a series of music festivals and benefit concerts founded by Eric Clapton. The festivals benefit the Crossroads Centre founded by Eric Clapton, a drug treatment center in Antigua. The concerts showcase a variet ...

since 1999.

History

The centre was founded by guitarist Eric Clapton & Richard Conte, CEO of The Priory Hospitals Group (London), and Transitional Hospitals Corporation (Nevada). All development of the facility was performed by officers and employees of these two companies. Conte & Clapton served as the centre's first two board members with Conte being chairman. Transitional put up all working capital during the development phase and the facility was initially owned 2/3rds by Transitional and 1/3rd by Clapton. Former prime minister

Lester Bird Sir Lester Bryant Bird KNH (21 February 1938 – 9 August 2021) was an Antigua and Barbuda politician and athlete who served as the second prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda from 1994 to 2004. He was chairman of the Antigua Labour Party (AL ...

of Antigua was integrally involved with Transitional and arranged for the government of Antigua's assistance with roads, utilities and a favourable land purchase price. Conte's wife is credited with naming the facility and his associate Lester Keizer of Transitional was the 'point man' on the project.

Location and description

The Crossroads Centre is located on the island of Antigua. It is a drug and alcohol treatment centre which has a 36-bed design. It opened in 1998.

Treatment

Crossroads Centre is a structured residential program which follows a 12-step approach that is modeled after the Betty Ford Center and Alcoholics Anonymous. the facility has 36 beds.

Caribbean clients

Crossroads is the only drug rehabilitation program on the island of 80,000 people. At a time when drug trafficking and addiction rates have been rising in the Caribbean, the facility will treat locals at low cost. Clapton's target is to have one-third of the beds reserved for permanent residents of the Caribbean islands. about 15 percent of the beds go to poor people from Antigua and Barbuda.

Fundraising

Eric Clapton personally organises the

since 1999, with guests such as

Albert Lee Albert William Lee (born 21 December 1943) is an English guitarist known for his fingerstyle and hybrid picking technique. Lee has worked, both in the studio and on tour, with many famous musicians from a wide range of genres. He has also mai ...

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...

, Jeff Beck,

Keith Richards Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943), often referred to during the 1960s and 1970s as "Keith Richard", is an English musician and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the co-founder, guitarist, secondary vocalist, and co-princi ...

Keith Urban Keith Lionel Urban (born 26 October 1967) is an Australian-American musician, singer, guitarist and songwriter known for his work in country music. Recognized with four Grammy Awards, Urban also received fifteen Academy of Country Music Award ...

, Robbie Robertson and

Robert Cray Robert William Cray (born August 1, 1953) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He has led his own band and won five Grammy Awards. Early life Robert Cray was born on August 1, 1953, in Columbus, Georgia, while his father was statione ...

among many others. The 2013 two-day event at Madison Square Garden was the fifth such benefit concert. Also supported are two

halfway houses A halfway house is an institute for people with criminal backgrounds or substance use disorder problems to learn (or relearn) the necessary skills to re-integrate into society and better support and care for themselves. As well as serving as a ...

for recovering addicts, on Antigua for local residents, and in

Delray Beach, Florida Delray Beach is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population of Delray Beach as of April 1, 2020 was 66,846 according to the 2020 United States Census. Located 52 miles (83 kilometers) north of Miami, Delray Beach is in the ...

for others.

References

External links

Crossroads Centre at Antigua
{{coord, 17.0390, N, 61.7258, W, source:wikidata, display=title Drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers Medical and health organisations based in Antigua and Barbuda Buildings and structures in St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda Eric Clapton Organizations established in 1998 1998 establishments in Antigua and Barbuda