Front, from left, Lerato Lebopo, Feloma Arendse, Ronel Horne, Natalie Nomdoe, Busisiwe Mandleni, Bentley Roman, Lehlohonolo Malahlehi and Clifford Uwuoruya. Second row, Denzil Baartman; Bruce Damons; Zinzi Malakane; Phumelele Hadebe and Ezra Nomdoe. Third row, Wensley Jackson; Lynne Damons; Marlene Goliath; Sharon Stellenberg and Arti Ndwebi. Back, Rubina Setlhare, Veonna Goliath, Leon Langley, Nico Klein, Keenan Damons, Helani Blom, Amy De Raedt, Ellen Myburgh and Christiano Mac Donald.
This initiative, under the Hubs of Convergence, Hub 1: Individual and Collective Wellness, and supported by an NRF grant, responded to substance abuse and explored preventative strategies in communities and on university campuses.
The programme commenced with an art-therapy-inspired hand reflection activity, integrating personal experiences with course material to encourage thinking throughout the non-credit-bearing Short Learning Programme (SLP), which is registered at Mandela University.
The event also featured a two-day workshop, “From Confronting to Carefronting: A Community-Based Substance Abuse Prevention Approach,” with staff from the four universities, students from Mandela and Stellenbosch University, the YMCA in Gqeberha, the Uniting Reform Church, Gelvandale Gqeberha (pilot site) and representatives from the THRV participating.
Among these participants from the THRV Cape Town chapter, were high-ranking reformed former gang members, former drug addicts, and community members from Eerste River, who work in THRV.
Facilitated by Pastor Nomdoe, Professor Veonna Goliath and Dr Bruce Damons, discussions covered addiction stages, peer pressure dynamics, and community-based support. Unique insights came from ex-gang members and recovered graduates of the THRV residential rehabilitation programme, emphasising harm reduction and community care principles.
On the final day, participants visited the Hope Revolution facilities, concluding with a community walk to the Home of Hope, a community house in Eerste River, that serves as a safe space for recovery. Looking forward, the programme aims to implement five core objectives across the Spaces of Hope: empowerment, stakeholder collaborations, safe spaces, awareness, and intervention. Future expansion is planned at MUT in 2025.
Paintings from participants; Stellenbosch University Dean of Education Professor Mbulungeni Madiba and Keenan Damons, an SLP participant and artist and the final art piece by Keenan