Support 500 vulnerable South African children

Growing up in Alexandra Township under challenging circumstances is very difficult, and even more so if you are an orphan. Nokubonga*, a 19-year-old young woman, lost her mother during the hard lockdown in 2020, and was left to fend for her four siblings, the youngest being just one year and two months old.

At the age of 19, Nokubonga had becaome a surrogate mother with no parenting skills. She had to care for and protect her siblings, do all the cleaning, cooking, washing, bathing of her siblings and adjust to a lifestyle change, from teenager to parenthood, overnight. She had to drop out of school when her mother fell ill and still yearns to complete her final year of school.

Nokubonga has faced numerous new challenges since then, including no longer receiving her mother’s grant money, nor her own child grant, as she is over 18. The shack that they live in, located next to the Jukskei River, is small and currently accommodates eight people – her aunt also moved in with her two children. The shack floods with water whenever it rains and the river bank threatens to wash away underneath them.

Rays of Hope took Nokubonga and her siblings into the Ithemba Labantwana programme in October 2020 and has been supporting the siblings with home visits to check how they are coping, providing counselling, food parcels and clothes, and taking them to school. The programme is now in the process of building them a proper house away from the river. Like any other child, Nokubonga has big dreams about her life and wishes to achieve them. She has every potential – and the ambition – to do something great with her life, and it is with the support from people like you, that this will be possible.

Thank you for supporting these vulnerable children and restoring hope to this family, through the most difficult time.

*Not her real name

Links:

• Read our February newsletter

Lockdown was difficult for everyone, but for the poor and vulnerable families living in Alexandra, it was almost unbearable. Food was in short supply, unemployment levels higher than before, children not at school but also not learning, gender-based violence at staggering levels, fear running high and loved ones dying from the virus and other illnesses. 

While Rays of Hope's team did what they could in lockdown to support the families who are part of the programme, many, many adults and children have been left feeling depressed, traumatised, suicidal and damaged.

As soon as we could, when lockdown levels were reduced, we opened our new Counselling Centre. It provides a safe space for people to meet with qualified social workers to talk, receive support and slowly, slowly move towards feeling stronger and better able to cope with life. It is because of the support from people like you, that we can offer this service to the community and partner with them to a place of healing and restoration.

For the children, we have a play therapy room that allows them to receive counselling while playing. We also have our after-school programme, which provides a safe space to receive unconditional love and support, while being encouraged to talk through what they see, hear and feel - most of which children should never have to experience in their young lives.

Thank you for partnering with us to enable us to restore young lives and the lives of their families, and to give them hope for a better future!