four-year bachelor degree program in two years. It was while there that he spoke about the drug rehab clinic at a Brazilian
Baptist Convention meeting, and of the desire to purchase the six-acre property. One Brazilian businessman in the audience
was moved by Ramos’ story and decided to purchase the property on the behalf of the rehab clinic.
The clinic, which is a facility for males, currently has 30 residents and has helped approximately 300 addicts since its
inception, with an average of 50 per year. Each resident goes through a 10-month, four-stage program designed to wean the
addict off drugs. This includes an adaptation or adjustment stage which lasts for 30 days; three months of psychotherapy,
which is incorporated with prayer, Bible reading, and instructions in the Christian faith; another three months of leadership
and development training, as well as involvement within a local church; and finally, reinstatement into society where the
person returns to his community and family in order to be re-socialized, and where the person may be given assistance to
continue school or find employment. This final step should last 90 days.
There are successes. Several have experienced full recovery, 20 have been baptized over the past six years, and 10 have
been or are going through formal theological training.
But the failure rate can also be high. Only about 20 percent usually have full recovery. Of every 30 residents, about three
or four may experience recovery at the first try. For those who relapse and return to the facility a second time, another two
or three out of 30 may recover.
Ramos claims that these figures are similar to other drug rehab programs. The failure rate, he said, is often due to a lack
of commitment on the part of the addict, and though he recognizes that some cannot be helped, he said the center always
has an open door.
Ramos is particularly pleased about the spiritual dimension of the program. In one small Baptist church, he estimated
that 50 percent of those who attend are family members of addicts who have been through the program.
But the clinic has an uncertain future. Its status with the Brazilian World Mission Board is yet to be determined, especially
since the death of Tymchak in April 2007. Tymchak, who headed the Brazilian mission body from 1979 until his death,
ensured that the project had the financial support of the World Mission Board. Since his passing, no financial support has
been forth coming, except for Ramos’ salary. Moreover, the question has been raised as to whether the clinic should be
passed over to the Baptist Evangelical Convention of Peru, but it is unclear whether the Peruvian convention would be able
to financially sustain the program.
It is because of these developments that attempts are being made to make the clinic self-sustaining. The center charges
a fee, but a number of the residents are unable to meet the cost. The Baptist World Alliance, through Baptist World Aid, has
provided 100 percent funding for the construction of a chicken farm with the hope that the farm will help to defray the cost
of those who are unable to pay the clinic’s fee.
Volunteers keep the center going. Two pastors, one social worker, a physician and a psychologist all donate their time,
free of cost. Three other volunteers, who themselves were helped by the clinic to recover from drug addiction, offer their
services for free, in return for living at the center without charge.
The dream of Ramos, married since November 2008 to a student studying psychiatry, is
that this drug rehab clinic would become a model that can be replicated in other countries. He
claimed it was a dream also shared by Tymchak, and it is a hope that Ramos still holds to firmly.
PHOTOS: BWA General Secretary Neville Callam presents a check to Pepe Flores, president of the Baptist Evangelical Convention of Peru, for
the construction of a chicken farm for the drug rehabilitation center in Arequipa, Peru; Marcos Andre Pena Ramos, founder of the drug rehab clinic in
Arequipa, Peru
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