Coming Soon
Young Hearts
Teen Rehabilitation Centre
Discover a path to recovery where healing meets growth. Our unique program blends therapy, life skills, and nature to help teens overcome addiction and build a brighter future.
Donate and Help Build
A Brighter Future For Our Teens
We invite you to be a part of a transformative journey by supporting the Young Hearts Teen Rehabilitation Centre. This vital project aims to provide a safe haven for teenagers battling addiction, offering them a chance to reclaim their lives through innovative therapies, life skills training, and a nurturing environment. Your generous donation will help us build this sanctuary, empowering our youth to overcome their struggles and create a brighter, drug-free future. Together, we can make a lasting difference in the lives of countless young people.
Tax Deductable Donations
Young Hearts Teen Rehabilitation Centre is a registered Non-Profit Company (NPC) dedicated to transforming the lives of teenagers battling addiction. As a registered NPC, donations made to Young Hearts are tax-deductible, allowing you to contribute to a life-changing cause while benefiting from tax relief. Your support not only helps fund the development of our rehabilitation facility but also empowers the next generation to break free from the cycle of addiction and build a brighter future.
The Beginning
In the battle against drug abuse, efforts often seem to fall short, with the problem growing larger despite widespread education and enforcement. Schools, police, religious groups, and NGOs all contribute to anti-drug efforts, yet the number of youth trapped in addiction continues to rise. This growing crisis presents an opportunity to help those who genuinely wish to break free and rebuild their lives.
The concept for the Young Hearts Treatment and Training Centre was born from the personal experience of a young woman struggling with addiction. During her recovery, she was unable to perform a simple task like picking a lettuce from a garden, revealing the gap in basic life skills among our youth. This realisation led to the idea of a rehabilitation center where young people could reconnect with nature, learn essential skills, and heal through a holistic approach.
The Problem
Drug and substance abuse, along with other addictions, are pervasive yet often hidden issues in South Africa. The statistics are alarming:
- 15% of South Africans are problem drug users, excluding those addicted to behaviors like gambling, sex, pornography, or overeating.
- South Africans consume illegal substances at twice the global average rate.
- 15-30% of high school pupils admit to having a substance abuse problem and needing help.
The need for affordable, effective treatment is clear, yet the available facilities are insufficient and often inaccessible to those in need.
Our Objectives
All Together will offer a unique approach to rehabilitation, focusing exclusively on teenagers. The center will be based on a farm, away from the urban environment, where traditional methods are combined with Equine Assisted Therapy, work, and skills training. The aim is to empower graduates with the skills and confidence needed to start a new life, free from addiction.
The Place
The proposed facility will be located near the outskirts of Fourways, Johannesburg, on a 35-hectare plot or farm with river frontage. The site will include accommodation, stables, workshops for skills training, and agricultural tunnels for self-sustaining gardens. The teenagers will engage in daily tasks on this ‘working ranch,’ learning to care for animals, grow vegetables, and manage household chores, leaving no time for idle hands.
The Treatment
All Together will implement a three-phase rehabilitation program:
Phase 1: Detoxification
Traditional weaning from drugs coupled with proactive detox activities, including physical exercise, sweat lodges for spiritual and physical cleansing, intense counseling, and Equine Assisted Therapy.
Phase 2: Rebuilding Self-Worth
Focus on life skills and occupational therapy, offering technical skills like mechanics and carpentry, creative arts like beadwork and painting, and business skills like finance and administration. Patients will contribute to the facility as part of their rehabilitation, fostering a sense of self-worth and purpose.
Phase 3: Reintegration
Preparing patients for re-entry into society by employing their skills on the farm, producing goods for sale, and mentoring new residents. This phase aims to build confidence and empower individuals to face the world with renewed strength.
