'It's really hard. It's a good hard, though': Unique farm program helping people battle addictions
CTV
At Academy Farms in Langley, they raise bison and water buffalo, but this is more than a farm. It's a place that's helping people from across the country find their way out of addiction.
At Academy Farms in Langley, they raise bison and water buffalo.
But this is more than a farm.
It’s a place that’s helping people from across the country find their way out of addiction through hard work, determination, and the therapy that working with animals can bring.
“Animals have a way … of helping us through some of the toughest times,” said Marc Vance, one of the farm managers at John Volken Academy, a long-term drug and alcohol rehabilitation program.
And tough times are something the program participants – referred to as "students" at the farm – know all too well.
“I was addicted to meth and cocaine," said Josh Draper, a student at the farm.
"I struggled with it for a lot of years. And I was getting in trouble with the law," he said. “I have a little boy at home, two years old. That’s why I’m here."