Crossroads Centre Antigua, founded by music legend Eric Clapton, is a residential addiction treatment facility that has served about 5,000 clients since it opened in 1998.

In 2001, with financial support from the Mill Reef Fund, Crossroads began an addiction prevention program for primary school children in Antigua and Barbuda. Originally called “Breaking the Cycle,” the curriculum included life-skills and decision-making training, peer pressure resistance, and information on the harmful effects of alcohol and drug use. The program was taught to 16,500 participants during its first 15 years.

After going dormant for several years to reevaluate and restructure the program, it was reinstated in 2022 as the “Lifeskills and Prevention Project” (LAPP). The curriculum is based on the Botvin Life-Skills program, a comprehensive substance abuse and violence prevention program designed for Grade 3 students. During the 2022-2023 school year, a total of 40 public and private schools participated in the program and more than 930 students benefitted from its addiction prevention curriculum.

With MRF’s backing, LAPP is now expanding to include Grades 4 and 5. This will enable them to track the efficacy of the program and offer additional training to older students.