Teen Rescue Foundationadmin2022-08-07T12:12:50+00:00
Teen Rescue Foundation is a charitable institution to actively discourage and reduce harmful alcohol use and its consequences among under-age teens.
The Foundation provides financial support for Australian organisations which offer front-line initiative in situations in which teens consume alcohol, and those which provide education for teens and their families in the dangers of teen alcohol consumption.
We know these kids. Their stories have stirred us to action.
Alice, 15
A typical Friday night on the Gold Coast. The parties happen here every week, in private homes and in public parks. The invitations are public, too. And there's too much drinking. The police usually turn up and send everyone home. But tonight is different for Alice. She vomits. Passes out. They pump her stomach at the hospital, and she’s okay the next day. Back at school on Monday, she tells her friends it was all a lot of fun.
Sam, 11
It was just an innocent sleepover with a mate from school. Or so Sam's mum thought when she dropped him off. But no sooner had she left than he made his way down the street to a big party in a park, with a bottle of rum in his backpack. Eleven years old.
Sarah, 17
It’s Friday night at schoolies week. Sarah’s friends say she’s always a nice person, but she's a party girl and sometimes goes too far. She hit the alcohol and drugs hard that night. Thank God they called the ambulance before her heart stopped. Resuscitated and stomach pumped, she was straight back on the alcohol and drugs the very next night.
David, 17
Another Friday night at schoolies week. Another seventeen-year-old on alcohol and drugs. Another heart stopped. This time, no ambulance. Every week in Australia, one teenager between the ages of 14 and 17 dies as a result of alcohol abuse.
True stories.
These are the stories that have stirred us to establish Teen Rescue Foundation. Stories that are replayed across Australia every week of every year. Our young people need our help. Desperately. Teen Rescue Foundation is here to save them from alcohol abuse. Together, there is much that we can do. We need your help.
Join Teen Rescue Foundation
It's free to become a supporter.
Join us in taking a stand to save young Australians from alcohol abuse.
We'll keep you informed on the work we're doing and ways you can help.
Every week in Australia, one teenager between the ages of 14 and 17 dies as a result of alcohol abuse. Rates of drinking at harmful levels among 12-17 year olds have doubled in the past two decades. One in twenty 12-15 year olds engages in regular binge drinking, one in four 16-17 year olds and almost one in two 18-19 year olds. One in two Australian teenagers who get drunk do something they regret. The alcohol problem costs our country $7 billion a year.
The statistics are alarming. But they are turning around. The latest research reveals a remarkable trend: for the first time in decades, rates of underage alcohol abuse are on the decline. Years of work are paying off. The initiatives are working.
Every year across Australia, teams of thousands of organised volunteers are active day and night in schoolies weeks, university o-week parties, camps, music festivals and sporting events, actively looking out for young people, encouraging them to be responsible and picking up the pieces when they’re not. Habits are changing. Young lives are being saved.
In hundreds of schools across Australia every year, experts are presenting the truth about the dangers of underage alcohol abuse to thousands of teenagers and their parents.
The urgency of this vital work is rising, and more and more volunteers are stepping forward to the front line. Organisations like Red Frogs and Scripture Union are expanding their programs.
More resources are needed to train and resource these and other such important operations.
In May 2011, wine writer Tyson Stelzer approached Red Frogs CEO Andy Gourley and Scripture Union CEO Peter James with an ambitious proposal to raise significant funds to resource this crucial work across Australia. Three-and-a-half years of complex legal and financial work later, Teen Rescue Foundation Limited is officially ready to resource the work of combating teen alcohol abuse in Australia.
The mandate of Teen Rescue Foundation Limited is principally to provide financial support for Australian organisations which provide front-line initiative in situations in which teens consume alcohol, with an objective to actively discourage and reduce harmful alcohol use and its consequences among teens. Secondly, it sets out to financially support Australian organisations in providing education, support and services for teens and their families relating to the dangers of teen alcohol consumption. To achieve these goals, Teen Rescue Foundation Limited has established a Public Ancillary Fund as a philanthropic Trust dedicated exclusively to resourcing this work.
The Foundation also takes a responsibility to raise the profile of this work by communicating the initiatives that it supports.
Teen Rescue Foundation needs your help. Please join our fight to make a real difference for young Australians by signing up as a member. It’s free and it gives us the chance to keep you informed on the work we’re doing and ways you can help. Please spread the word and encourage others to join us, too.
Please also consider ways in which you are able to support us financially, through your own fundraising initiatives and donations. All donations over $2 are fully tax deductible. Your money will get through to where it counts. Our costs are negligible and we have no paid staff and pay no commissions to fundraising organisations. The only costs we pay are bank fees, insurance and auditor's fees. We have already saved more than $13,000 in legal set up costs thanks to volunteer assistance.
We are greatly encouraged by the turnaround in teen alcohol abuse in Australia in recent years. We are committed to making a very real difference for the future of young Australians. We need your help.
Teen Rescue Foundation Limited is endorsed for charity tax concessions by the Australian Taxation Office.
Teen Rescue Foundation Limited ACN: 167 742 234
Teen Rescue Foundation Limited ABN: 42 340 027 046
Charity Registration Number (Queensland): CH2619
Fundraising Registration Number (Victoria): 13256
Approval to solicit for charitable purposes (Tasmania): Ref C/10155
Charitable Collection Licence (Australian Capital Territory): L19000851
Collections for Charitable Purposes Licence (South Australia): CCP2157
Charitable Fundraising Number (New South Wales): CFN/23501
Charitable Collections Licence (Western Australia): CC 21809
Teen Rescue Foundation Privacy and Security
Teen Rescue Foundation acknowledges and respects the privacy of individuals and does not disclose any personal details collected from you to any third party. We limit the collection and use of personal information to the minimum required to provide a high level of service to our members. We therefore maintain the name, postal and email addresses and telephone number of our members. You may provide us with your email address so that we can contact you, answer a query or send you information on our activities. If you wish not to receive emails you may unsubscribe by contacting us. Your email address is private and we will never sell or disclose it to third parties. You have a right of access to, and alteration of personal information concerning yourself in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988. Please direct any enquiries regarding this matter to Teen Rescue Foundation by email to admin@teenrescuefoundation.org.au or telephone 07 3848 6605.
Teen Rescue Foundation values the privacy and security of your donations and we do not collect any credit card information on our site. Teen Rescue Foundation uses the secure eWay payment gateway to process all transactions. EWay employs the highest level of bank-grade security available, including full encryption of transaction details.
Some organisations which Teen Rescue Foundation is equipped to support.
The Teen Rescue Foundation Board of Directors
Tyson StelzerFounder and Director of Teen Rescue Foundation
Tyson Stelzer is a multi-award winning wine writer, television presenter and international speaker. Read more about Tyson...
Sarah DixonDeputy Chair of Teen Rescue Foundation
Sarah Dixon is the Executive Director - Strategic Communication and Engagement and Acting Executive Director, Governance, Risk and Commercial Services at Gold Coast Health. Read more about Sarah...
Tyson Stelzer is the Founder and Director of Teen Rescue Foundation.
Tyson is a multi-award winning wine writer, television host, keynote speaker, host of corporate wine events, wine show chairman and judge, author of fourteen wine books and a regular contributor to fifteen wine magazines.
Professional qualifications and memberships:
• Bachelor of Arts, 1995
• Diploma in Education, 1996
• Bachelor of Science, 2000
• Graduate Certificate in Educational Leadership, 2005
• Member of the Wine Communicators of Australia
Philanthropic, volunteer and charitable experience:
• Author of "A Parents’ Guide to Teen Alcohol and Parties", circulated to more than 150,000 Australian families, with the support of Australian wineries.
• Creator and organiser of "The Australian Wine Trade Flood Relief Raffle", rallying the wine industry to raise more than $276,000 in aid for Australian flood victims in 2011.
• Founder of "The Australian Wine Trade Africa Famine Response", supporting wine companies in contributing a proportion of Christmas proceeds to overseas aid.
Experience in working with teenagers:
• Teacher and Head of Science, Trinity Lutheran College, 1997-2006
• Youth leader, Our Saviour Lutheran Church, 1994-2000
• Camp Director, Lutheran Youth of Queensland, 1993
• Camp Leader, Lutheran Youth of Queensland, 1990-1995
Sarah Dixon
Sarah Dixon is Deputy Chair of Teen Rescue Foundation.
As Group Manager at Rowland Corporate Communication, Sarah is a highly respected communication executive, with more than a decade of experience consulting at the highest levels of business and government.
Professional qualifications and memberships:
• Bachelor of Business (with Distinction), Major: Communication, Extended Major: Public Relations, Queensland University of Technology
• Justice of the Peace (Qualified)
• Working With Children Suitability Blue Card
• Member, Australian Institute of Company Directors
• Member, Women on Boards
• Golden Key National Honour Society Member, QUT Chapter
Philanthropic, volunteer and charitable experience:
• Considerable professional practice in the not-for-profit sector, including in education
• Secretary and Board Director, Redeemer Lutheran College (Rochedale, Queensland) Council
• Forde (Australian Electoral Division) Community Contribution Award Recipient (1999)
• Completed a four-week residential youth leadership training course of the Lutheran Church of Australia (2001)
Experience in working with teenagers:
• Former Queensland Debating Union Adjudicator
• Former violin teacher
• Rotary Youth Exchange Student to Germany (1998)
Rebecca Murray
Rebecca Murray is the Secretary of Teen Rescue Foundation.
Rebecca is an experienced lawyer, currently serving as Review Officer at the Office of the Information Commissioner Queensland.
Professional qualifications and memberships:
• Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice (PLT), Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane
• Bachelor of Laws (LLB) (Hons), Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane
• Member of the Queensland Law Society
Philanthropic, volunteer and charitable experience:
• Justice Advocate, International Justice Mission, Australia
• Volunteer Legal Advisor, Madonna House Domestic Violence Refuge
Experience in working with teenagers:
• Youth Volunteer, Youth Mentoring/Buddies Day, St Vincent de Paul Society
Karen Rohde
Karen Rohde is Treasurer of Teen Rescue Foundation.
Karen is an experienced accountant and a teacher at Concordia Lutheran College.
Professional qualifications and memberships:
• Bachelor of Business (Accounting)
• Bachelor of Education (Grad, Secondary)
• Graduate Diploma of Theology in Education
• Member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand
Philanthropic, volunteer and charitable experience:
• Director, Queensland Lutheran Giving, September 2017 - present
• Director, Family Radio Limited (96five Family Radio), November 2001 – May 2016
• Treasurer of Business Educators Association of Queensland, Sunshine Coast Branch, January 2004 – December 2015
• Treasurer and founding member of The Global Happiness Project Inc, October 2014 – December 2015
• Secretary, Lutheran Youth of Queensland, January 1995 – May 2006
Experience in working with teenagers:
• High School teacher, Concordia Lutheran College, 2016-present and Pacific Lutheran College, 2003-2015
• Outdoor Education Program, Pacific Lutheran College
• Camp Director, Lutheran Youth of Queensland
• Camp Leader, Lutheran Youth of Queensland
Teen Rescue Foundation Patrons
Teen Rescue Foundation patrons are committed to promoting the cause of the Foundation and to setting an example of responsible alcohol use.
Stephen & Prue Henschke, Henschke Wines, Eden Valley, South Australia
Jeffrey Grosset, Grosset Wines, Clare Valley, South Australia
Chris Hatcher, Wolf Blass Wines, Barossa Valley, South Australia
Kym Teusner, Teusner Wines, Barossa Valley, South Australia
Peter Leske, La Linea, Adelaide Hills, South Australia
Sue Bell, Bellwether, Coonawarra, South Australia
Vanya Cullen, Cullen Wines, Margaret River, Western Australia
Larry Cherubino, Cherubino Wines, Perth, Western Australia
Drew Tuckwell, Printhie, Orange, New South Wales
Andrew Caillard MW, Woolworths, Sydney, New South Wales
Colin Campbell, Campbells, Rutherglen, Victoria
George & Ruth Mihaly, Paradigm Hill, Mornington Peninsula, Victoria
Angie Bradbury, Dig + Fish, Melbourne, Victoria
Peter Scudamore-Smith MW, Brisbane, Queensland
Newsletter Updates
To receive our newsletter updates by email, please join us.
|Comments Off on Changing culture from the inside out
A group of students knocked on my staff room door early one Monday morning, back when I was a Gold Coast high school teacher 18 years ago. They were deeply concerned for one of their peers who passed out from intoxication at a party on Saturday night. They asked for [...]
|Comments Off on Teen Rescue Foundation Annual Appeal 2019
Teen Rescue Foundation is proud to launch its annual appeal 2019 and invites tax-deductible donations toward front-line initiatives that make a real difference in addressing teen alcohol abuse across Australia.
In 2018, Teen Rescue Foundation was honoured to be acknowledged as Supporter of the Year by one of our key beneficiaries, [...]
A Parents' Guide to Teen Alcohol and Parties is a free resource for Australian school families, written by Tyson Stelzer with the support of Australian wineries committed to making a positive difference for young Australians. The initiative was awarded Special Commendation for Responsible Drinking Message in The Drinks Business Awards 2012 in London.
The full-colour A5 booklet leads parents through 8 pages of strategies for:
• Modelling good drinking behaviour
• Communicating with their teenager
• Starting the discussion young
• Negotiating the boundaries
• How to host a safe party
• Hosting over-18 parties
• Attending a party
