Troubled teens given chance to SHINE
Thu 17 August 2006
Amy Taylor, Journalism
Troubled teens will be given a chance to shine if an innovative farm project proposed for the Sunshine Coast hinterland goes ahead.
Organised by SHINE (Safer Homes In Noosa Everyday), the project needs to raise $3 million in 10 months for plans to go ahead.
SHINE Chairman and Christian Outreach Centre Church Pastor, Michael Clift, said they would need support from the community but believed their financial goal was achievable.
“The fund raising goal to get the SHINE Farm operational is set at $3 million and following the amazing success of last years major project in Noosa, which saw SHINE build three residential units for domestic violence victims over two weekends, such a figure is definitely achievable,” he said.
Mr Clift said the farm would offer a home style environment where at risk boys between 13 and 15 could live indefinitely with in-house carers.
“Staying at the SHINE Farm for as long as it takes could restore self-esteem, teach life skills, farming skills, instil old-fashioned family values and bring hope for the future,” he said.
Maroochy Councillor Greg Rogerson said he saw the project as a much needed mentoring program for the community.
“The target group would be young people at risk of becoming lost to society, potentially suicidal, abuse affected or simply socially disconnected,” he said.
“Some teenagers who are having trouble going through the formative years of boys to men need practical help, positive mentors and time away from their current environment.”
The proposed project has received mixed reactions from the local community. Kenilworth Community College Parents and Citizens member Kate Atkins said she was not sure how the Kenilworth community would benefit from the project.
“All this money will be raised and thrown at these kids but what about our community needs? How will the community benefit?”
Mrs Atkins said at a recent forum held to discuss the proposed project several issues were raised by members of the local community.
“Zoning would have to be changed for the project to go ahead. What then happens if it closes six or 10 years down the track and another “like” project starts that isn’t backed by the community? What I think they (the community) would like to know is that if it opens and then folds, that it will return to being a farm,” she said.
“Also, the immediate neighbours to the farm – which is on a quiet road only used by the people who live there – who is going to guarantee those people their safety?”
Mr Clift said they had already placed a deposit on a 69.4 hectare farm near Kenilworth, which could house up to a dozen boys.
“We want to raise enough funds to run the property for a few years – if at all possible. We don’t want to be reliant on the government, it’s too uncertain.”
He said the funds would also pay for necessary structural changes to the proposed Kenilworth property.
Cr Rogerson said he was working with planners to further develop the project.
“It’s still in the planning stages and they still have to go through all the processes. The farm has to be seen as a home… it’s a discipline thing. We all have to conform and follow rules,” he said.
“Maroochy Council is very much involved in the project. At the moment we’re looking at contributing in-kind support and we may be able to help with application fees and that sort of thing.
“It will be a facility available to the whole of the Sunshine Coast. Just because it’s in Maroochy doesn’t mean it will be just for the Maroochy Shire.”
Mr Clift said they would work with schools to find children who could benefit from the service.
“I’ve had a passion to help boys at risk of becoming suicidal and affected by crime and drugs. We’re chasing that age because it’s before they get heavily into the court system,” he said.
“The farm itself isn’t the answer but we can utilise the activities to build their confidence and self-esteem, to help rebuild their lives again.”
Image(s) designed by Amy Taylor