Durban - LIV Village

LIV DURBAN

LIV DURBAN PLACES VULNERABLE AND ORPHANED CHILDREN INTO A FAMILY ENVIRONMENT WHERE THEY RECEIVE UNCONDITIONAL LOVE, SPIRITUAL DISCIPLESHIP, CARE AND NURTURING.

RESTORATION IN A FAMILY ENVIRONMENT

LIV Durban was founded by Tich and Joan Smith with our first children and mums moving
on to the village in 2011. The daily runnings and leadership was handed over in 2016 and is now being led by Jono & Carita McCririe.

We are all about family. We teach each child the value of family life in a loving home and village community, where all their physical needs are taken care of. We want to equip our children with essential moral values and life skills, so that they can live lives that will influence and inspire others, giving them a sense of belonging and purpose, and turning scars into stars.

TAKING A HOLISTIC APPROACH TOWARDS WHOLENESS

At LIV Durban we place vulnerable children in loving homes where they are loved and cared for, educated at LIV School, and looked after holistically to be released as stars. We do this by focusing on all areas of their lives.

Learn more about how we impact our children’s lives through our different programmes on the village and how we work with almost 200 children on the road to wholeness.

EDUCATING OUR CHILDREN

At LIV, we believe that a solid holistic education plays a vital role in giving every LIV child the opportunity to reach their full potential.

Most of our children attend our on-site LIV School, a registered Independent School comprising of an Early Childhood Development (ECD) Centre, a Primary and a Secondary School. We also offer a Technical Occupational Curriculum (TOC) stream which includes welding, admin, and culinary training.

Some of our children with special needs attend local schools that are better equipped to meet their specific needs.

RAISING OUR CHILDREN IN A FAMILY

The primary goal at LIV Durban is to restore the lives of the children who are placed with us. We want to raise them to become successful adults who contribute positively to our country. This is achieved by firstly providing every child with a home and a foster mother, within a family environment where all their needs are met.

Our Social Services team works closely with the children through upliftment and mentorship programmes, and counselling to help restore their lives, as well as providing ongoing training for the foster mothers.

TAKING CARE OF OUR CHILDREN’S HEALTH

We have two dedicated healthcare facilities. Our health clinic at the village serves the LIV children, mothers, staff and volunteers.

Our LIV Owethu Community Clinic is designated to provide primary healthcare to the semi-rural community of Cottonlands.

This is an impoverished community with numerous associated health care challenges which include HIV/AIDS, malnutrition, poor dental hygiene, and teenage pregnancies. All our services and medication is given to patients at no cost.

PROVIDING THERAPY
FOR OUR CHILDREN

Most children at LIV Durban have extremely traumatic backgrounds. We have found that having our own therapy team that can meet the individual needs of our children is hugely beneficial in overcoming their trauma and developmental delays.

The therapy team consists of a counselling psychologist, speech therapist, occupational therapist, and equine therapist.

For more information, please contact us at

[email protected]

SPORTS ON THE VILLAGE

We value and acknowledge sports as an imperative part of a child’s development and as a therapeutic outlet.

This is why we offer a variety of sports for our children, including rugby, cricket, soccer, basketball, netball, and athletics.

Those who have a passion for mountain biking can join our LIV2Ride programme where we coach our children in off-trail riding.

THE CHURCH IN THE CENTRE

Jesus and the church is at the center of everything we do at LIV.

We seek to bring light to darkness, hope from despair, beauty from ashes and encourage one another into the fullness of life that Jesus gives.

We believe in the discipleship of nations that is biblically based, authentic, contagious and brings Heaven to earth.

Our church is open to all who live on the village and to our local community.

JOB CREATION AND SUSTAINABILITY

Creating positive change in South Africa by helping the commmunity of Cottonlands has been part of the LIV Durban vision since day one. We do this by creating employment and training opportunities through our various departments, and have loved seeing the huge impact this has had on the community over the years.

EMPOWERMENT TOWARDS SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH LIV BUSINESS

The inception of LIV Business came from the founders of LIV Durban, recognising the need for the village to achieve self-sustainability, while simultaneously addressing the issue of unemployment within the impoverished community surrounding LIV Durban.

RELEASING STARS THROUGH LIV TRAINING

LIV Training is an initiative to uplift local communities through skills development and employment.

Partnering with various companies will enable us to embark on the Training and Skills Development phase of LIV – to rescue, restore, raise and release community members who are unemployed and unskilled. This training will enable successful graduates to be employable when they leave, providing them with a new hope and a future.

CREATING OPPORTUNITY THROUGH LIV2RUN

For us at LIV2Run, a win is a changed life.

Running can ignite hope, inspire individuals, and push us to conquer challenges. It imparts valuable lessons in discipline, focus and the significance of teamwork. Moreover, running has the capability to transcend racial and socioeconomical boundaries, uniting us in a common spirit of unity and community.

Driven by passion that evolved into purpose, LIV2Run becoming an official club on 16th June 2018. Our primary aim is to restore, raise and release athletes within LIV Durban and disadvantaged communities around South Africa.

CHANGING STORIES THROUGH LIV STORE & CAFE

Our LIV Stores bridge the gap between our village and our Durban community. These stores are a way for us to show people the heart of our village.

Many lives have been changed through the employment opportunities created through LIV Store, and we look forward to seeing this initiative grow.

Visit our LIV Store & Cafe at Glenore Centre, Glenashley for some wonderful food and coffee.

1997

The LIV vision

God gave Tich Smith, founder of LIV, a vision to build a village for orphaned and vulnerable children to have a safe home, a mother to love them, food to eat, a school to educate them, and where they will come to know God as their Father in heaven.

2001

Feeding children in Amaoti

The journey began in 2001 in Amaoti, the largest informal settlement in KwaZulu-Natal, feeding starving children, under the umbrella of Indlela, and later Lungisani Indlela.

Between 2001 and 2009, over 600 children were placed on our Back-2-School project and 27 creches andpreschools were supported with teacher training and daily food.

2010

Our Banquet

In April 2010, 4000 guests from Government, Business and Churches, came together for the biggest banquet ever held at the Durban ICC.

This was the beginning of a special partnership between Government, Business and the Church, working together to tackle the orphan crisis in South Africa and Africa. In June 2010, the first phase of LIV School and the church went under construction, followed by the first 16 houses

2011

Our first children, LIV Church, and LIV Business

Women’s Day on 9th August 2011 celebrated the arrival of the first mothers and the opening of LIV School with 6 pupils. 2011 was a year of building in many areas, including the Social Services and Homes Management, Education, Marketing and Admin departments, as well as the start of LIV Business to not only provide jobs and skills, but to also contribute towards the sustainability of the Village. It also marks the year we started LIV Church.

2014

The first village almost complete

96 homes, an Early Childhood Development (ECD) Centre to cater for 200+ preschoolers, and a primary school up and running with 9 teachers. They were supported by qualified volunteer physiotherapists, occupational and speech therapists.

The LIV Social Services and Homes Management departments provided counselling for the children and guidance for the mothers, as well as recruiting and training future mothers.

2015

5 Year Celebration

The newly completed Multi-Purpose Hall and Church, with an adjacent admin block, was the perfect place to celebrate and host the village turning 5!

This included a memorable Banquet No 2, for 400 guests, a celebration of how far LIV had come.

2016

New Leadership & expansion

Tich and Joan handed over the daily running of LIV Durban to the McCririe’s and Koyana’s.

It was also the year our LIV4Change six-month discipleship programme was launched and our LIV Choir toured Johannesburg, the UK, and Dubai to share the LIV journey through a vibrant song and dance production.

2022

We continue to make an impact

Our first youth conference, Come Together, was hosted in June 2022, which has since become an annual event.

We also celebrated our fifth group of matriculants graduating from LIV School, and celebrated the launch of our online school, which is allowing us to offer a wide range of subjects to our children in order to pursue their careers of choice.

LIV DURBAN PLACES VULNERABLE AND ORPHANED CHILDREN INTO A FAMILY ENVIRONMENT WHERE THEY RECEIVE UNCONDITIONAL LOVE, SPIRITUAL DISCIPLESHIP, CARE AND NURTURING.

El Roi Baby Home Currently Closed