At 17, Austin Warner was a ?real public nuisance? and facing prison after a trial on charges of armed robbery and attempted murder.

Eleven months later, the same judge who had sentenced him offered him the chance to undergo drugs rehabilitation and he has never looked back.

Today Mr. Warner ? a qualified drugs counsellor and ordained minister ? faces a different challenge: Finding the funding to keep his weekly ?Family Focus? talk radio show on the air.

The show, which airs from 6.15 p.m. to 7 p.m. every Wednesday on ZBM 1340, tries to reach people who are on the same path that the American teenager was on.

?It was total desperation,? he said. ?There was no more joy. There was nothing. I don?t remember feeling a sense of happiness and there was depression all around me ? an overwhelming loneliness.

?I was a gifted boy who threw away so many wonderful opportunities and so I was full of a lot of guilt and shame.

?I didn?t ever dream this would happen to me. I remember that I was 17 almost 18 and I was at a place in my life where my addiction was way out of control and I was living like a bum on the streets.

?I actually got arrested for armed robbery and attempted murder ? that was the pivotal point in my life.?

He believes that God had a hand in his recovery and all the people he needed to play a role in his life were there.

?My belief is when the student is ready the teacher appears,? he said. ?The judge who sentenced me to do time was the one who called me back to his chambers 11 months later and gave me the opportunity to go to rehab.

?That was what turned me around ? it was an opportunity to make a difference.?

On August 17, Mr. Warner celebrated his birthday ? and 35 years of being drug-free.

And now, more than ever, he wants to spread the word that recovery is possible by highlighting the triumphs of individuals who have risen to that challenge and have overcome the other hurdles that life throws up.

Mr. Warner, who is an American and has lived in Bermuda for 30 years, is now the guidance counsellor at Sandys Middle School. He said when he first arrived on the Island he was impressed with the mindset and the spirit of the Bermudian people.

?It encouraged me and enlightened me,? he said. ?But I have been here for so long that I have seen a change in that mindset and it now disturbs me to see that. So, rather than criticise and get on the one o?clock talk shows, I just thought that I would go to the other end of the spectrum.

?The very foundation of the show is to establish a truism ? that there are some extremely gifted people and unfortunately we don?t spend enough time searching them out. I tell people that I value what they do and I want to encourage them to keep it up.

?We spend too much time criticising, condemning, finding fault and believing lies. So, the show was birthed out of my need to really accentuate the positives.?

Mr. Warner often looks for unsung heroes and heroines.

?I seek out single parents who work very hard sending their kids to university,? he said, ?And the kids who are appreciating it by coming back and making a difference. The drug addicts who are in recovery and people who provide a service like civil servants. I want to let them have an opportunity to shine and to make it clear that we really appreciate who they are and that we are all one family.

?And for the most part, there is a sense that the institution of marriage is dead. But couples have worked hard and been together through thick and thin ? they have held on and they are our teachers, our mentors and our elders.

Sometimes people come on Family Focus and share their experiences and it gets emotional.

?But with my background training I make sure that there is dignity to it,? he said, ?And not like Jerry Springer.

?And at the end of each show I do a commentary, which basically wraps up the whole show and it speaks to what was so important about that person.

?The motto is ?Be very gentle with yourself and with others around you? ? that?s what people remember when they hear Family Focus.?

Now Mr. Warner is hoping to find a sponsor so that message can keep getting out.

?What I am looking to do is to give the show another two more years and do it to the very best of my ability and have as many people in the show as I possibly can,? he said.

?I am also looking at producing about six television versions of Family Focus. I am going to zone in on age issues because the elders are our wisdom, their commitment has been made and it is like the Bible says, ?we should honour them?.

?But besides worship, [the programme is the highlight of my week. I believe that in order to enjoy the joy ? I have to express my gratitude and give back.

?I want people to know that Family Focus is still going on and we are still doing some great things.?

When the show first began, Mr. Warner mainly talked to those with issues that were close to his heart, but the programme was not popular at that time slot.

?The station felt that I was competing and I kept praying,? he said. ?It started out as a talk show and I was dealing with issues surrounding substance and drug abuse. It was great and enjoyable and it was something that I being a recovering addict had a strong knowledge base in because I am a psychotherapist in addiction.

?I got some encouragement from Brian Duperreault, president and CEO and now chairman of ACE.

?He encouraged me and he and his organisation sponsored a new show. They did that for almost three years and whatever cost was involved they paid it, but about a year or so ago they decided to fund another interesting thing and I got to a place where I began to use my own funds to fund it, although I was getting support from here and there.

?We are not a charity and it would disturb me to start a charity for a radio show. There are so many other charities that need help.?

In his youth he never dreamed that he would live to be 20 years old.

?So to be 53 is an honour,? he said.

?I do believe that God gives everyone an opportunity to change and to emerge ? you just have to take that opportunity.

?I am into helping people recognise the value that they have inside. I have committed to loving them and loving them until they grab onto the idea. Because I was un-loveable I was a real public nuisance, but somebody decided that they were going to love me and show me how to love myself.

?And what I am doing at this moment is merely preparation for something greater and more dynamic.

?So, I see the value of giving that back and every Wednesday I say thank you and let them thank one another.?