St. Christopher's is a long-term, privately owned men's residential addiction treatment program with more than 25 years of experience treating addiction in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. We are one of the longest-standing addiction treatment programs in the state.
Recovery at St. Christopher's happens in Chapters. Men enter at different points in their lives, but each Chapter is designed to help them build the skills, accountability, relationships, and confidence needed to move toward lasting recovery.
Our programs are CARF-accredited, grounded in the 12-Step model, and enhanced by evidence-based clinical practices, dual diagnosis treatment, and a multidisciplinary team of licensed professionals who bring both expertise and personal investment to this work every single day.
How St. Christopher's Addiction Wellness Center Was Built
St. Christopher's opened in Baton Rouge in 1998 as a 12-Step immersion program for men, rooted in the belief that recovery requires more than short-term stabilization. It requires structure, accountability, community, and time. That founding conviction has never changed.
Today, the organization operates as a private, clinician-owned program under the leadership of CEO Brandy Klingman and COO Zach Knippenberg, who have spent years strengthening the clinical foundation, expanding the continuum of care, and evolving St. Christopher's into the comprehensive long-term treatment program it is today, without ever losing sight of the principles that made it meaningful in the first place. Zach came through St. Christopher's as a client himself before earning his Master of Social Work and returning to help lead it. The people running this program know what it takes to walk through it because many of them have.
St. Christopher's is a privately owned, clinician-led organization. Every decision we make is driven by what is best for the men in our care, not by corporate priorities or shareholder interests. That independence allows us to maintain the kind of long-term commitment to clients, staff, and outcomes that larger institutional programs rarely sustain.
Our staff includes licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, addiction counselors, psychiatric nurse practitioners, psychologists, psychiatrists, registered nurses, and licensed practical nurses. We believe the quality of our staff is the quality of our care.
We have been treating addiction in Baton Rouge long enough to watch men grow up, raise families, build careers, and come back years later to sponsor the next person sitting in the same chair they once sat in. That continuity is not something you can manufacture. It is what 25 years of doing this work with integrity looks like.
Everything we do is rooted in tried and true principles, creating a standard of care that is steady, intentional, and built to last. Recovery does not require reinvention. It requires the right combination of timeless values and modern clinical depth, applied consistently over time by people who are genuinely invested in the outcome. That is what St. Christopher's has always been, and it is what we will continue to be.
The clinicians, counselors, and leaders who show up every day for the men in our care. Meet the people behind the programs.
Our Baton Rouge campus was designed with recovery in mind. See the spaces where healing happens.
We believe recovery is more than abstinence. It is a rebuilt life. Here is the clinical and human philosophy that guides everything we do.
From one man's sobriety to 25 years of community impact in Baton Rouge. The story of how St. Christopher's came to be.
The brotherhood does not end at discharge. Learn how STC alumni stay connected and how that community becomes one of the most powerful forces in long-term recovery.
Our admissions team is available around the clock. If you have questions about our programs, our team, or whether St. Christopher's is the right fit, we are here to talk.