For 35 years, Lighthouse Foundation has been creating safe homes, therapeutic care and communities where children and young people experiencing homelessness and trauma can heal, grow and belong.
But to understand where Lighthouse began, it helps to hear the story from the person who started it.
Our Founder, Susan Barton AM, recently joined Aintree Group’s Q&A Podcast to reflect on the experiences that shaped her life, the beginnings of Lighthouse and what more than four decades of caring for children and young people have taught her about safety, relationships and belonging.
It is a conversation that offers a unique insight into the heart of Lighthouse, in Susan’s own words.
Where it all began
Susan’s journey began more than four decades ago, following a life-changing experience volunteering in a Sri Lankan orphanage.
The experience stayed with her and sparked a deep commitment to children and young people who had been denied the safety and care every child deserves.
Susan began opening her own home to vulnerable young people, providing a place where they could feel safe, cared for and accepted.
What began as a personal commitment eventually grew into Lighthouse Foundation.
Over the past 35 years, Lighthouse has evolved into an organisation providing therapeutic homes, foster care, kinship care and support within the community.
But while our programs have grown, the belief at the heart of Lighthouse has remained the same.
Every young person deserves a safe home, strong relationships and a community where they belong.
More than a place to live
For young people who have experienced homelessness and trauma, finding a home is an important first step.
But healing takes more than a roof overhead.
It takes people who are there consistently. Relationships built on trust. A sense of safety. And a community that helps a young person understand that they matter.
This is why Lighthouse’s Model of Care is centred on therapeutic relationships and creating environments where young people can feel safe, belong, heal and thrive.
It is an approach shaped by Susan’s own experiences and by decades of listening to young people and understanding what they need to move forward.
As Susan reflects in her conversation, caring for children is everybody’s business.
35 years of creating community
What started with Susan opening her own home has grown into a community of people who share her belief that no young person should have to face homelessness and trauma alone.
Our carers, staff, volunteers, supporters, partners and advocates all play a role in creating the safe and supportive communities young people need.
And that community continues to grow.
As Lighthouse celebrates 35 years, we are reflecting on how far we have come while looking ahead to the work still to be done.
Because youth homelessness remains a reality for too many children and young people.
And every young person deserves the opportunity to feel safe, supported and connected to a community that believes in them.
Hear Susan tell the story of Lighthouse
Susan’s conversation on Aintree Group’s Q&A Podcast is a chance to hear more about the experiences and beliefs that shaped Lighthouse Foundation.
She shares reflections from her life and her work, including what she has learned from the young people she has cared for and why relationships, community and belonging remain so important.
Listen here to Susan Barton AM on the Q&A Podcast.
The work continues & how you can help
Thirty-five years after Susan first opened her home, Lighthouse has supported more than 1,650 children and young people.
Our work has grown, our Model of Care has evolved and our community has expanded, but the purpose remains unchanged: to create pathways out of youth homelessness and help young people build a lifelong sense of belonging.
Susan’s story is where Lighthouse began.
Our community is how that story continues.
There are many ways you can be part of it.
You can volunteer, foster a child, partner with Lighthouse or help us provide ongoing care by becoming a Lighthouse Keeper. Our Lighthouse Keepers make an ongoing contribution that helps us continue our life-changing programs and keep our homes open throughout the year.
Become a Lighthouse Keeper
However you choose to be part of Lighthouse, it begins with caring.
Listen to Susan’s story. Hear the stories behind youth homelessness. And ask yourself: what part could I play in creating a community in which every young person has somewhere and someone to belong to?
