From the streets of addiction to the heart of community restoration, Constance Heneke is on a mission — and she wants Mitchells Plain to hear her cry. For over a decade, the 37-year-old mother, wife, entrepreneur and woman of faith lived in the grip of heroin and tik addiction.

Today, she’s thirteen years clean and raising funds to help others find their way out of despair — just like she once did.

“Do you hear the cry in Mitchells Plain?” she asks with urgency. Do you see how we need to live in fear?”

Heneke knows this fear intimately — not just from her past life on the streets, but from what she sees daily in her community: young people lost to drugs, families fractured, and hopelessness growing under the shadow of violence.

“It’s for this reason that I’m raising funds — not for myself, not to make myself look good,” she said..

“That guy running around with a gun, God’s going to touch his life — and when He does, he’s going to need a place to recover. I believe it can be done.”

Heneke credits her transformation to a single moment — one flyer, handed out by Victory Outreach Church, inviting her to a production called Puppet Master. She tucked it into her back pocket on her way to buy drugs and, later that day, read it while in a drug house. It struck a nerve.

“I still told my mom I didn’t have a problem. But something told me to go that Friday night — and I did. I broke down. I cried the whole way through. And when a woman offered to take me with her to Victory Outreach Recovery Home, I said yes.”

That decision, Heneke said changed everything.

“When I walked into the doors of Victory Outreach Recovery Home, my life was changed and touched by the hand of God through the ministry of Victory Outreach International,” she said.

“It will always be my standpoint — because that’s where I was fed, clothed, and could stay for free for a year. I could’ve stayed longer if I needed to. That kind of compassion changed everything.”

Today, Heneke is the proud owner of Naturally Rooted, an engraving business making handcrafted gifts, keepsakes and jewellery. She never imagined this life — not marriage, not two God-fearing children, not a home or business of her own. But now, she sees her purpose clearly.

“My short-term goal is to raise funds to contribute to the bigger vision. Every contribution helps. Long-term, I want to be a financial aid to Victory Home and help support others in need — because in life, you can’t do much without resources.”

Her dream is to see recovery homes in every part of Cape Town, starting with her community.“We want to bring a plan of Jesus Christ and hope to the streets of Mitchells Plain,” she said.

“If we had a recovery home in every area, we’d have a lighthouse in every community.”

Heneke is currently collecting both monetary donations and in-kind items — anything that can help restore dignity to those in recovery.

“We welcome vegetables, non-perishable food, clothing — anything you feel could add value to this cause. The goal is to get the addict off the streets and into a safe place where they can recover holistically.”

Her voice carries the weight of experience — but also the lightness of hope.

“If you sponsor me, the money doesn’t go into my bank account,” Heneke said.

“It goes straight to where it’s needed to make an impact. Lock arms with me — your little can do much in the right hands,” she said.

tracy-lynn.ruiters@inl.co.za

Weekend Argus

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