Hello, my name is Mark Ransome, the owner, creator and website Administrator for this website "Special Trusted Friends". I have struggled with alcohol addiction for many years and in 2012 I was admitted int the BAC O'Connor (Burton Addiction Centre) in Burton-upon-Trent, Staffordshire, United Kingdom for three months. While in there, at the end of every group we all used to stand around in a circle, hold hands and recite the "Serenity Prayer", then we turn around to each other and say "Special Trusted Friends". This was to signify and reinforce that the people in the group were special and trustworthy to each other.
When I came out of the BAC O'Connor in 2013 I wanted to do something to try and help others, so using my Web Development skills I bought the domain name "specialtrustedfriends.com". My idea was to create a safe and secure place, or community online where people with addiction and mental health problems could find and connect with other like-minded individuals and get support or give support to others but away from the mainstream social media networks (I don't have to mention any names there do I? I'm sure you know who I mean!), and so "Special Trusted Friends" was born!
As we say in the rooms "What's said in the room, stays in the room!", the same applies here, "What's said in the website, stays in the website!". This is a closed online community and you must be a member and logged-in to take part. You will also notice there are no "Social Sharing" buttons or links to those other mainstream social media networks apart from the Homepage, the Contact Us page and this page, these are the only pages you can share to spread the word to others who may benefit and need support. This is to help protect those who are members and who take part in this website, to maintain confidentiality!
Special Trusted Friends is completely free to join and take part in. We have many of the features you would expect from an online community with Friend Requests, upload Photos, Videos, and Music, Chat Rooms, Private Messaging between friends. You can also read or post your own Blogs and Forums for you to take part in plus much more!
You will notice when you are logged-in that there is a small amount of advertising here and there! Each time someone clicks on an advert it generates a few "Cents". This revenue is to help pay for the monthly hosting bill for this website. It is not there for me to make a profit, I am not here for that! That being said, so far it has never fully paid for a months hosting, I pay the difference out of my own pocket. Indeed, if ever it does produce any profit, I will donate this to other worthy causes. I do hope you understand?
I take your Personal Privacy very seriously! This website is fully GDPR compliant and none of your personal details will ever be shared with other 3rd parties. You can read the full Privacy Policy here.
Thank you for taking the time to read this "About Us" page.
If you are already a member you can login here.
If you wish to sign-up you can do so here.
If you wish to contact me please go to our "Contact Us" page here. Or you can email me directly at mark@specialtrustedfriends.com.
Whether you are currently in addiction or in recovery, I sincerely hope you enjoy and benefit from this website!
Kind regards,
Mark Ransome
