MORE than a facility but a place of possibility, The Duncan Centre for Life Skills Development in Winklespruit is an NPO for young adults on the autism spectrum, aimed at developing valuable life skills, recognising their potential, and nurturing it lovingly.

The facility is based at 16 Murray Smith Road and operated by business and life partners, Stephen and Ettiënne Frost.

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When his stepmother died more than 12 years ago, Stephen lost contact with his stepbrother Adam, whom he used to visit in Pietermaritzburg. Stephen took care of Adam as much as he could, living with mental and learning disabilities. Trying to track him down years later with no luck and a dad who passed on, Stephen is left wondering whether he is lost in a system or taken by someone else.

Devastated thinking about how his brother is functioning out in the world with no basic life skills, Stephen decided to start a passion project with Ettiënne that has been operating for eight months with six learners and a plan to enrol more. As architects, Stephen and Ettiënne decided to revamp parts of their house to accommodate learners. Different sections of the house accommodate the different skills taught to the learners, such as cooking, cleaning, gardening and woodworking, an arts room for painting and sewing, a gym for their health and fitness, and a music section where they have a teacher come in every Thursday for lessons.

“We try to get them to a point where they can either be employed or they can start their own little business, manufacturing something they can sell and earn some money, just some sort of independence,” said Stephen.

The challenge of ensuring a continued education is sidetracked by the struggle to find sponsorships and get donations, writing to businesses with hopes of getting responses, and urging the community to make donations, even just for toilets rolls, spare wood, and light bulbs for the learners’ art projects and educational books for their lessons.

The dedication and care from Stephen and Ettiënne is admirable and the love from the learners is a testament to their hard work to make their lives better.

Their future plan is to establish a coffee shop at the centre, open to the public, earning them business management skills, social skills, service training and the confidence to know how to take care of themselves.

For donations and more information, The Duncan Centre can be contacted on 062 002 1896.

Join their Facebook Group @ The Duncan Centre for Life Skills Development.

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