Pubdate: Fri, 22 Mar 2002
Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC)
Copyright: 2002 Times Colonist
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/victoria/timescolonist/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481
Author: Kim Westad, Times Colonist (Victoria)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/rehab.htm (Treatment)

ADDICT CHATS WITH VISITING PRINCE, BUT ROLLING STONE WAS REAL THRILL

A princely handshake was pleasant, but nothing compared to meeting a member 
of the Rolling Stones, said one of a dozen addicts who met Prince Michael 
of Kent Thursday at the Pemberton House detox centre.

Bradley Rodgers had a brief chat with the Queen's cousin as the prince 
unveiled plans for a new site for the facility that helps addicts.

Asked what it was like meeting the prince, Rodgers said it was "quite nice. 
But meeting Keith Richards in 1989 was a thrill."

About the only similarities that the ravaged Richards and the prince appear 
to share is their age -- 59.

The nattily dressed prince toured Pemberton House for about 15 minutes, 
chatting with several residents at the 13-bed facility, as well as members 
of the board, housekeepers and other staff.

Several area authors attended, presenting the prince with a copy of the 
book Addicted: Notes from the Belly of the Beast.

The prince called the book of essays written by well-known Canadians 
dealing with their individual addictions "very valuable."

Whether members of the local literati or a shy-looking Pemberton House 
resident slouched in a chair, all are fighting addictions.

Prince Michael's questions received candid responses.

"How long does it take to deal with the addiction?" he asked Governor 
General Award-winning author Patrick Lane.

"I think it takes a lifetime," said Lane, an alcoholic. "I'm aware I could 
slip off into it in a minute."

Pemberton House board chairman Gordon Harper told the prince of being 
admitted into the facility seven times in 1997 and 1998 to deal with his 
addictions.

"I was so surprised to find a facility like this, with such a sense of 
welcome and hominess and almost love," Harper said.

Prince Michael is a car buff -- he was driven in a vintage Rolls Royce in 
Toronto, and in a new BMW "I" series car in Vancouver. But what he thought 
of writer Susan Musgrave's car parked outside Pemberton House -- it is 
festooned with hundreds of tiny toys -- couldn't be determined as he was 
whisked off in his rental car to the next function.

Musgrave's husband, Stephen Reid, wrote a chapter about addiction in the 
book presented to the prince.

The Pemberton House visit was one of the prince's last stops on his 11-day 
tour of four provinces, with 54 engagements.

Later Thursday, at Government House, he participated with Lt.-Gov. Iona 
Campagnolo in the presentation of the Queen's Venturers Awards for Scouts 
Canada. Venturers is a Scouting section for youth aged 14 to 17. Forty-five 
Venturers from across the province received their awards.

This was a private tour, not official royal duty, for the prince who has 
the Queen's permission to earn his own living. He was in Canada to help the 
Monarchist League of Canada celebrate the golden jubilee.

He was kept busy during his two-day Victoria stop -- even fitting in tea at 
The Empress -- but the inclement weather saw his visit to Butchart Gardens 
cancelled.

Prince Michael is said to be a modern-day twin of his great uncle, the last 
czar of Russia, Nicholas II. As a member of the Royal Family, he lives in 
Kensington Palace. However, he receives no payment from the Civil List or 
Privy Purse. He earns his living largely through being an entrepreneur and 
running a consulting business for small- and medium-size business 
enterprises. He is also a qualified Russian interpreter.

"He very much tries to extend his expertise and interest in small and 
medium business enterprises between Russia and the West," said John Aimers, 
a tour organizer. "He thinks that is one of the key ways Russia can rejoin 
the family of nations."
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MAP posted-by: Terry Liittschwager