SLIPPERY ROCK — The Revs. Mike and Kathy Bruno of Abba Ministries Counseling Center, 249 Grove City Road, know there's one option opiate addicts usually don't consider in their effort to get sober.

Mike Bruno said, “It's the power of Jesus.”

“We believe in doctors and methadone clinics, but sometimes there has to be a miracle, literally,” he said. “We pray for people. Jesus is just the same as he was 2,000 years ago.”

In addition to counseling up to 40 clients a week, the Brunos are also pastors for the nondenominational Abba Christian Center which has been meeting in the Slippery Rock parks building at 320 N. Main St. every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. for 20 years.

Mike Bruno said, “I've been a minister for 35 years beginning in 1982.

“I was born in East Pittsburgh, my wife, too. We both went to SRU in the early '70s,” he said. “I taught for six years in Clearfield.

Called to counsel

After getting a master's degree in counseling and psychology at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Bruno was ordained after attending Day Spring Ministries in Tarentum.

Bruno said he also returned to school for post master's work at Penn State.

Kathy Bruno said, “We started counseling full time at Slippery Rock in 1982. We had a house on South Main Street across from campus. Kids would come to our house for counseling. We called it New Life Ministries and it ran from 1982 to 1997.”

“Counseling has been a major part of the ministry for my wife and I,” he said.

“I affect hundreds of people every year. We counsel 40 people a week. We do sexual abuse counseling for all ages, and, of course, with the opiate epidemic, everything is tripled,” said Mike Bruno.

He sees a connection between his sexual abuse counseling and his drug counseling.

“We deal with opiate abuse from the roots up. Those with a heroin addiction, a significant percentage have been sexually abused.

“People have hurt other people, opiate addiction comes from denial, they want to escape and we deal with why they want to escape,” he said.

Bruno claims a higher counseling success rate with this roots-up approach and “the power of Jesus” to perform miracles in the lives of people who are seeking help.

“We try to incorporate everything into our search now,” he said.

Meeting a need

Kathy Bruno said, “The center has been a newer realization of a dream. There is a place for people to go to since there is such a need.

“A lot of people that come to us don't pay. It runs on donations. There are different people that support it, businessmen, other pastors and area churches. We tell pastors what all we do and they send donations, for rent and utilities.”

The Brunos said their counseling service gathers clients by word-of-mouth.

Mike Bruno said, “What we are trying to do is do the best we can to accommodate needs that are very real. One aspect is a relationship with God. Many never look at that avenue.”

While there are certain things they must report to the police, the Brunos said their whole goal is to collaborate with others.

The Brunos also have healing services, at least once every six weeks, during their church services.

“Some people are not going to come to a healing service, but we can offer what we call entrance points. The biggest thing is we present Jesus as a key to being helped,” he said.

Pastors Mike & Kathy Bruno525 Mercer RoadSlippery Rockphone: 724-421-5139 email: abbachristian@zoominternet.net