The strength in never giving up.

Catch phrases; they’re often little more than lip service to corporate clientele, a clever marketing tactic designed to look good in a crowded marketplace. 

But for Pathway Charitable Group, the catch phrase ‘We never give up on anyone. Ever.’ is well and truly embedded in the very heart of the organisation.   

It plays out daily in the fresh starts that its own clientele receive and it stands as a powerful marker of just how life-changing ongoing support is when it comes to turning one’s life around. 

A real-life example of it took place just a handful of weeks ago, in the form of Nate making his way down the long driveway of 44 Mandeville Street, making his way to Pathway. 

This time last year we had been supporting Nate in his journey to wellness. An alcoholic with a troubled past, he had been sober for six months, his longest stint off alcohol outside of prison. 

He was feeling so well that he thought one drink couldn’t hurt, just one. It would be the start of a six month long bender that would see Nate disappear, sleeping in squalor, living on the street with just a bag of dirty blankets and the clothes which had been on his back for six months to his name. He had lost everything. 

“There’s a very big difference between a problem drinker and an alcoholic,” Pathway Reintegration Navigator Matiu Brokenshire says. 

“Where a problem drinker might be able to make that decision to just drink on special occasions, the alcoholic can’t just have ‘one drink’.” 

In a moment of reflection, knowing he needed help urgently, he turned to Pathway and Pathway, which never gives up on anyone, ever, was there for him.  

Utilising the Royal Wolfe shipping container Clothing Project initiative, Matiu was able to kit Nate out in new clothing, he took him for a shower and a haircut, secured emergency accommodation and food through WINZ, organised ID and a medical check up before making a plan for his recovery. 

Nate has connected with a programme to support him on the road to recovery, he’s getting a sponsor and taking it day by day. 

“While he had experienced life sober, he hadn’t experienced the fact that as an alcoholic, you can’t just stop at one drink,” Matiu explains. 

Pain is a symptom of all spiritual growth. Falling over is just part of his journey and one that we will support him to get through. This is the ultimate example of why we do what we do.

“We’re here to go on that journey with him, to help him heal and get freedom from addiction, to find peace in himself.”