Teens Alive: Essentials

Email register@haven.ca, or call 1-800-222-9211, ext 1 to register.  Online registration is not available for this program.

Teens Alive has been offered at The Haven for more than twenty years and is an extremely popular program, with many teens returning year after year. Linda Nicholls and David Raithby created Teens Alive to support people in their teens on their journey to develop a strong sense of ‘self’.

In our teen years, we have an important opportunity to learn about our ‘self’ and to learn to communicate clearly from this place of strength. We can improve and deepen friendships and relationships, and also learn to be emotionally self-supporting. Teens Alive is designed to encourage you in this process.  Over the last twenty years, David and Linda have gathered and supported a wonderful team of facilitators and youth assistants who have helped make the program what it is today.  Two of those former youth leaders, Annika Raithby and Mackenzie Dickson, will be teaming up with Teens Alive creator Linda Nicholls to lead the program with a new updated structure co-designed with David and Linda.

Teens Alive is for people 14 to 19 years of age who want to:

• Become comfortable speaking their own truth in a responsible way
• Develop stronger self-esteem and self-acceptance
• Be less defensive and more curious and outgoing
• Make relationships work
• Deal with conflict
• Discuss topics like friendship, school, sexuality, music, violence, drugs, families, authorities, social media, global issues, and career
• Have fun and get to know other teens
• Enjoy The Haven’s beautiful natural surroundings and its ocean side facilities – including swimming pool, hot tub, gym, and games room

  At The Haven, young people must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.  Parents/guardians are responsible for their teen outside of program hours.  

Testimonials:

Teens Alive is not an experience you can find anywhere else. It affected every part of my life, and reframed how I interact with me, and with the world around me. It felt like years of healing done in such a short time frame; It was such a meaningful experience that I’m forever grateful for.     Maia Hoile, 2018/2019/2022 participant

Teens Alive was an incredible experience. I met so many wonderful people and built lasting connections with them, learned many different tools to help cope with different difficulties which have made an impact on my daily life and ability to manage stress, and discovered new things about myself that I hadn’t previously been aware of. The leaders were kind, welcoming, and encouraging, and I personally felt as though I was able to develop connections with them. There was a great mixture of learning, communicating, and having fun throughout the program. It truly was an unforgettable experience that I will always look back upon with gratitude and joy.    Lumay, 2022 participant

Teens alive had more of an impact on me than I even understood as a teen. When I was there I found it really great to connect with people and developed life long friendships. I was fortunate that my mom was a haven participant in the adult program so we could work on our communication skills together. At the time I found it impossible to stay on top of it outside of family and the program though. However, as an adult, I find myself using the tools I learned each and every day. I am now a business owner and believe that the communication tools I learned in Teens Alive have allowed me to clearly understand the needs of my clients and listen. They have also allowed me to communicate my own needs more clearly with my clients to ensure we are on the same page and there are fewer misunderstandings. On the flip side, in relationships, I have been able to stay strong in my own power and keep a level head when in tense situations with loved ones. This has certainly allowed me to create stronger bonds and even weed out people that were not a fit for me.  I would highly recommend all parents drag their kids to Teens Alive kicking and screaming because they will be begging to stay after day 1 (and thanking you years down the line).              Sarah Kirkpatrick 2005-2010 participant and youth leader

Investment:

• Earlybird tuition is $1500 per participant
• Meal package for 5 days is $375 (available for teens, parents/guardians)
• A parent or guardian must accompany any youth attending programs. Accommodation charges range from $740 to $1825 for a 5 night stay depending on room type and number of people in the room.

You can find our cancellation policy here

Schedule:

Your program begins with dinner at 6pm and your first session at 7:30pm

Daily schedule:

• • • Breakfast 8:00 – 9:00am
    • Morning session 9:15am to noon
    • Lunch noon to 1:00pm
    • Afternoon session 3:00 – 6:00pm
    • Dinner 6:00 – 7:00pm
    • Evening session 7:30 – 9:30pm

Afternoon and evening sessions can vary.  Your program finishes with lunch on the last day

Transportation:

If you are travelling to Gabriola as a foot passenger on the Gabriola Ferry a shuttle to The Haven can be requested.  Information on this option will be included in your pre-arrival email.