Rev. Joseph C. Martin; gave hope to alcoholics

BALTIMORE - The Rev. Joseph C. Martin, 84, a recovering alcoholic and an international leader in the fight against alcoholism and substance abuse who was a cofounder of Father Martin's Ashley, a Harford County treatment center, died of heart failure Monday at his Havre de Grace home.

Father Martin's "Chalk Talk on Alcohol" and "No Laughing Matter" lectures have become standard tools used by recovery centers, schools, and employee assistance programs the world over.

"Father Martin is an icon in the treatment industry and was one of the first to describe alcoholism in layman's terms as a disease," said Mark Hushen, president and chief executive of Father Martin's Ashley, near Havre de Grace.

Born in Baltimore, the son of a machinist who was a heavy drinker, he was ordained a priest of the Society of St. Sulpice.

He began drinking while he held teaching positions at St. Joseph's College in Mountain View, Calif., from 1948 to 1956 and at St. Charles Seminary in Catonsville from 1956 to 1959.

Finally, the Archdiocese of Baltimore sent Father Martin to Guest House, a Michigan treatment center for the clergy. By the time he left, he had regained his sobriety and found what would become his life's work.

During the 1960s, he began presenting his program at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, rehab centers, and businesses.

In 1972, his "Chalk Talk" lecture was filmed by the Navy and later was picked up by the other armed forces, which used it as mandatory addiction training.

Michael K. Deaver, chief of staff in the Reagan administration, was a patient and later served on Ashley's board.

"When I came to Ashley, I had been with presidents, kings, popes, and prime ministers, but Father Martin was the most powerful person I had ever met," Deaver said. "You see, Father has the power to change people, to make them better, to make them whole again."