About Us

Who is Ed Khouri?

On paper, Ed Khouri is an ordained minister and pastoral counselor with a BA from the Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences at the University of Maryland, co-creator of the Thriving Recover Your Life program, and is the author of the Restarting Workbook and Facilitator Guide. He is a counselor, writer, and international trainer and teacher.  He is a co-director and co-creator of residential and support group programs, board member and missionary to the addicted community in the US and across the globe.   He is also very involved in the life of his local church where he preaches, and is helping re-envision church for this new season.

In person, Ed Khouri is a tireless worker whose heart mirrors the heart of Jesus.He is a person who has been in recovery for 30 years.  He has been helping the wounded and lost since 1980 and sharing the love and joy of Jesus Christ with the hurting community ever since. His passion for helping those caught in the snares of substance abuse and trauma has brought him into a variety of diverse settings. From outpatient counseling to in patient state licensed substance abuse treatment centers; from jails to transitional housing for the homeless; from residential treatment centers to small home groups. Ed has been an effective pawn of God in each area.

Ed’s most recent teaching endeavor Restarting has turned into a very exciting movement in the recovery field. Restarting is the first module in the Thriving: Recover Your Life program, and is a foundational, revolutionary, solution based ANSWER for building joy, receiving inner healing, overcoming addictions of every type, and developing life giving relationships that last. Ed’s own experiences with pain and joy (See Ed’s Story ) are the shining example of hope that Jesus wants to offer to all the hurting people around the globe.

As co-founder of Equipping Hearts with his wife Maritza Khouri, his ministry is to serve the addicted community worldwide by reaching out and helping those that have also been called to serve.

Who is Maritza Khouri?

On paper, Maritza Khouri is a Certified Addictions Professional with a Masters Degree in Counseling, a life coach, the founder of Recovery Seminars, LLC, and a pioneer in the field of "restorative coaching". She is ordained and an internationally certified alcohol and drug counselor.

Maritza in person is a joy filled loving daughter of God!  Her mother’s heart has led her into a very successful ministry to women whose lives have been battered by substance and sexual abuse. She has been counseling full time since 1996, and serving in the addicted community since 1989. Her passion for helping hurting women and their families has merged with Ed’s passion for helping hurting people seamlessly. They both travel and train together to equip others to more effectively serve the addicted community.

Her gifting in prayer and counseling has enabled her ministry to women to reach worldwide. The Lord has used her to minister to women and offer them the joy and love of the Lord in the midst of  devastating life traumas. Her ability to see others as God sees them is uplifting to anyone who comes in contact with her.  Maritza’s life experiences (See Maritza’s story) which taught her both joy and pain have been highly influential in the work that Equipping Hearts does throughout the world. Her love of the Lord, and all those that He loves- shines through in her daily life of servant hood.