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A fundraising golf tournament last month that raised $75,000 for Youth In Transition’s mental health services was the icing on the cake for the organisation, which recently established a retreat in Waitoki to further support young people.
Youth In Transition (YIT) has been operating mental health services for young people since 2014 and runs its Journey Back To Awesome programme from its Whangaparāoa clinic. Currently it has 374 young people in the programme, and 675 have been helped on their road to recovery.
Since last November, the young people enrolled in Journey Back To Awesome have also been welcomed to a new retreat, called Duke House, in Wainui, which has also enabled the charity to expand the type of services it can offer.
The rural property was purchased by businessman Rod Duke, who wanted to support the organisation’s work and provided YIT with a lease. The 1.6ha property has five buildings as well as native bush and gardens.
YIT director and co-founder, Tina Jones, says Duke House, which is set to have its official opening this year, has already enabled the expansion of YIT’s catchment, with referrals coming in from Helensville, Kumeu and Millwater.
As well as regular peer support groups and one-on-one counselling, 10 young people and their parents have been hosted there for a weekend retreat. A young person on the programme was also able to spend a weekend at the retreat with her family who travelled there for respite after being severely affected by the floods.
As well as counselling and holistic services, Duke House enables young people to connect with others through gardening and being outdoors.
Duke House will include space for fitness programmes, bush walks, growing edible plants, cooking classes, yoga, meditation classes and more.
YIT chair, Andrew Hoggard, says monthly counselling hours have risen over the past year by nearly 60 percent.
“The demand for our services is always high, but never higher than now,” Hoggard says. “Sadly lack of physical space and resources means we have had to turn young people away, which is heart breaking. That is why Duke House is so important.”
A formal opening ceremony for Duke House, including a thank-you to the charity’s supporters, will be held later this year. Anyone can become a Friend of Duke House to assist the organisation, which receives no Government funding.
Info: www.youthintransition.org.nz/the-journey-back-to-awesome
