A Taste of Paradise Organic farm is a Berry-based charity focused on supporting disadvantaged and at-risk young people.
Interacting with animals and a farm environment has proven life changing and healing impacts on vulnerable young people.
Pete’s Story
Pete is a 9-year-old boy who has been coming to the farm for 3 years. Pete has experienced a lot of trauma and has had difficulty trusting anyone because of it.
The programs that the mentors have been working on with Pete are designed to improve his emotional and cognitive function, with the aim being to work towards stable behaviour.
Read Pete’s Story…
Events
Come and say hello at some of our up-coming events.
Berry Farmers’ Market
Berry Farmers' Market, The Cow Shed in the Berry Showground, Albany Street, Berry
Berry Farmers’ Market
Berry Farmers' Market, The Cow Shed in the Berry Showground, Albany Street, Berry
Berry Farmers’ Market
Berry Farmers' Market, The Cow Shed in the Berry Showground, Albany Street, Berry
What our partners are saying about our services
A Taste of Paradise farm near Berry has been doing incredible work with local disadvantaged and disillusioned youth since 1999.
As these young people take responsibility for their own actions and experience the rewards born of their own effort, they develop greater personal resilience, while learning practical agricultural skills.
I would like to congratulate Mr Tim Francis and his dedicated team for all of the work they have done for many years and continue to do to assist disadvantaged young people in our local communities.
We have young people over the age of 12 years who participate in the mentoring program who look forward to their time at the farm each week. Thank you “A Taste of Paradise Farm” for providing an amazing and unique service for our vulnerable young people, we feel privileged to collaborate with you.
‘A Taste of Paradise Farm’ has been an amazing opportunity for two particular young people that I support. They [the staff] have been more than flexible, friendly and transparent in their approach. Especially as a case manager through COVID-19 with limited resources to support the young people, they have always tried to make things work because they are passionate about the young people they work with. They have always had the goal around building meaningful relationships in order to achieve best outcomes.
With the young person I supported, he was disengaged from school and struggled to regulate his emotions and behaviour. Through the one-on-one mentoring he now attends school full-time and loves it. Through the use of the farm, the children are able to build self-worth, confidence and trust in others, which is absolutely what they need as they grow into young adults.
Would highly recommend this program and cannot speak highly enough of the work they have done to support the children I work with.
I am in awe of the work he does and the impact that this can have on the young people. In fact often their time at the Farm has represented one of the few positives that they may have had in their life and the positive impact that this has had is hard to truly convey.
I have found that this program has enabled young people to develop skills, grow in confidence and overcome life challenges. Tim has always provided a safe and nurturing environment for the young people in his care. I believe that ‘A Taste of Paradise’ is an extremely valuable program for young people trying to overcome challenges and looking to establish themselves in life.
The program has given my child a boost in self-esteem and confidence and I think to be able to trust, like they trust their mentor, in such a short time is a credit to the mentor and the program. As a mum and a carer, there are a lot of people involved in my child’s care, I go to so many meetings that are not great, it’s really lovely to go to the farm and be understood and on the same page. It makes me proud to be associated with A Taste of Paradise Farm.
I have worked for many years .. with troubled youth, who do not fit into the community/societal norms that most people expect. In particular, I have found it very difficult to broker rewarding services that cater for 1-1 mentoring for young adolescents with disabilities. I cannot praise Tim’s interactions with my clients enough. The work that Tim does with these vulnerable people is amazing.
Latest News
Spring Activities
It's baby chicken time at A Taste of Paradise Farm. The young people have been watching the incubator eagerly and several chicks have just hatched. It is a joy [...]
New Mentor Appointed
We are very excited to welcome Tara to our team of mentors. Her appointment is a response to the increasing number of young people being referred to our program at the farm. [...]
Rewards from Community Industry Group
We are so grateful to the Community Industry Group for the grant they provided enabling us to have time out, away from business as usual, with the staff and [...]
A Huge Thankyou and Farewell to Jerry
Jerry has been an enthusiastic and valuable volunteer at A Taste of Paradise Farm for over 6 years. He and his wife, Sue, are about to embark on [...]
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Our Virtual Tour of A Taste of Paradise Farm and Charity
If you are looking for a general introduction to the workings of our farm and charity work take a look at this video. It’s a great overview of what work goes on at the farm and how our philosophy of organic production and animal management provides a strong platform for disadvantaged kids to learn about trust and responsibility through our mentoring program.
The Farm on Village Vets
We are very proud of our association with Village Vets, the Foxtel Lifestyle show which follows two young local vets- Anthony and James. The Village Vets provide us with an invaluable service helping us when our animals are in need.
We jumped at the chance, when the shows producers asked if they could film the boys at A Taste of Paradise, helping with a difficult birth of a calf.