History of the Buttery
The Buttery Inception.
Due to amalgamation of NORCO's factories the butter factory at Binna Burra was closed in 1947 and sold into private ownership.
In 1972 John McKnight was working as a Church Army Officer in the Anglican parish of Ballina. The influx of young people into the North Coast at this time, following the Aquarius Festival, bought with it a need for youth services. (The Aquarius Festival was a celebration of life and all that was alternate to mainstream society at the time). Captain McKnight believed that there was a need to start a ministry for youth and a base for an outreach service to the surrounding areas of Nimbin, Mullumbimby and Lismore to assist itinerant youth as well as providing a state-wide service for troubled youth seeking help with living problems generally. His vision was to develop a Christian Community where people needing assistance could come, contribute to the community in whatever way they could and at the same time benefit from their stay here. When the old butter factory was offered to him he accepted it and moved in, in 1973. To quote from a promotional pamphlet of the time,
"Since then (1973) a community of committed Christians has
evolved (and is evolving) having four clear aims.
Firstly: To communicate the Gospel of Christ.
Secondly: To care for fellow Christians.
Thirdly: To be involved in Social Action.
Fourthly: To develop a Christian community."
Like all community based organisations the origins of The Buttery are strongly indebted to the commitment of large numbers of volunteers who participated in facilitating the vision through contributions to management, construction, counselling and fundraising. The galvanising of energies through McKnightâs evangelism drew support from both the local Christian community and from Christian groups state-wide.
In 1975 The Buttery received a boost from the government in the recognition of the work being done and the much needed provision of an establishment grant.
It was in its early days the original "drop in" refuge of the Far North Coast. In 1976 for example, 3728 people stayed at The Buttery for differing periods of time and 4000 visitors came to see the work that was being done. Reports from the time, indicate that along with the dilapidated state of the buildings the large numbers of people passing through, provided a constant exhaustive drain on McKnight and his followers.
As early as 1977 there was questioning of the overall direction in which The Buttery was heading. An increasing interaction with drug affected people caused the focus to shift from the heady ideals of developing an alternate Christian Community with an outreach mission to providing a therapeutic community with the specific task of treating drug and alcohol dependence.
In 1978, a grant was received from the N.S.W. Drug and Alcohol Authority and work was begun on expanding the accommodation facilities. A Constitution was drawn up and became effective in August 1979. A second accommodation unit was completed and with increased Government funding, staff were employed to provide administrative and counselling support that required specific drug counselling skills.
The first Annual General Meeting was held in August 1980, and the first "graduate" passed through the program and received their graduation medal. Another watershed in that year was the departure of Captain John McKnight who took up a position as co-ordinator of N.A.D.A. (Network of Drug and Alcohol Agencies). McKnight took twelve months leave of absence to work at N.A.D.A. and Andrew Biven took up the position of Acting Director.
As The Buttery entered a new decade the changes in direction and structure of the place began to take effect. Group therapy was introduced, and a program was documented with rules and guidelines governing acceptable behaviours as a condition of staying. Art and craft were also included in this embryonic program. None of these changes were greeted with enthusiasm by the incumbent residents, as they meant a move away from previously leisurely nature of their stay here. The question of abstinence arose early in the restructured program, alcohol and attempts at social drinking were not working and so the idea of teaching people to modify or control their drinking was abandoned. This precipitated another mass exodus of residents from the program.
Early in 1981, a 17 hectare farm was purchased nearby, with the intention of expanding the program by providing independent accommodation to "graduatees" or those in the later stages of the program. During this year, the structure of the program clearly conformed to the classic definition of a therapeutic community with a staged program consisting of eight levels. Behavioural, moral and ethical boundaries were becoming more clearly defined and the concept of shared responsibility in all areas of an individuals progress and the general welfare of the community was consolidated.
By 1982 The Buttery was offering:-
"Support and understanding.
A drug free environment.
Space and time to learn and experience new ways of living.
Creative alternatives.
The Buttery is a community of addicts, volunteers and trained staff,
where decision making is shared, and where each member is expected
to actively participate in all aspects of the program."
The employment of two new staff in 1981 and 1982 introduced the "12 step philosophy" and its influence on the program grew from that time. After some initial resistance the 12 step philosophy gradually became incorporated into the program as an adjunct to the holistic living skills education.
After-care was a consideration in securing a half way house at Artarmon in October of that year; the transition from a long term residential program isolated from the mainstream had been a difficult time for many residents and the opportunity to move gradually back into society through a supportive network in the house and the Narcotics Anonymous Fellowship was a welcome addition to the program. A flow-on from the development of this after-care support was the shortening of the residential program and the comfort of knowing that people who left before completing the program would not be without support or a means of continuing their recovery in Sydney.
For the next two years a period of stability allowed consolidation of the program, however, in late 1985 Andrew Biven accepted a position with the S.A. Drug and Alcohol Services Council to establish a therapeutic community in Adelaide. Two short term Directors replaced Biven over the next two and a half years, they were Carolyn Stony and Steve Kinney. Prophetically Andrew Biven anticipated some disruption after his departure.
"The change and the challenge for me and The Buttery may be a little traumatic in the short run, but I'm sure that a new infusion of ideas and energy can only be for the good."
In the year that followed Biven's departure another half way house was secured in Surry Hills and The Buttery joined the newly formed Australian Therapeutic Communities Association. Mid 1988 Steve Kinney left The Buttery and was replaced by Barry Evans.
Three Directors in a relatively short period of time, the retirement of some long serving Board members and the inevitable staff changes had contributed to a period of dislocation in the management of the program but with the appointment of a new Director, and a new Board of Management, in 1989 a period of relative stability returned.
Between 1989 and the present day The Buttery program continues to evolve, the traditional model of a therapeutic community placing strong emphasis on the value of the therapeutic milieu remained, but building on top of this shared learning environment was the move to broaden the skills and the background of the counselling staff. Staff entered the TAFE Drug and Alcohol Advance Certificate, the content of groups became more structured and individual case management parallelled the addressing of attitude and behaviour change which presented on a daily basis.
Today residents at The Buttery embark on a standard program involving group therapy and education, living skills instruction and stress management training, art therapy as well as orientation to the 12 Step philosophy and self help groups. Following a twelve week initial program they can elect to move into a second program lasting a further five months, where as well as continuing to work in the areas mentioned, they can begin to address personal issues which had impacted on their life and influenced their potential to cope without using drugs or alcohol.
Currently, The Buttery's philosophy of treatment is very eclectic, with the emphasis continuing to be on addressing a persons living problems and not the drug(s) which have facilitated their decline. The 12 Step influence remains strong as an after care component but a bio-psycho-social definition of addiction successfully cohabits in the program. This defacto relationship works because the bio-psycho-social interpretation influences treatment direction and intervention by staff, while the 12 Step perspective and language provide a metaphorical interpretation of the issues that the residents find comfortable and generally easy to relate to.
