The weather was beautiful, the teams were awesome, the atmosphere was perfect and energy levels were at their highest … so much fun, heart and joy all in one place … we couldn’t have asked for a better day.
Special thanks goes out to all the teams that participated in our Piece the Puzzle Together event.
Beach and Bush Team Building you guys rocked as always! Thank you to our generous sponsors Glenwood Spar, Checkers and KFC. You helped make this day extra special. Thank you!
Our Child & Youth Care Centre was abuzz with fun and games over the long weekend of 16-18 June, as we celebrated our youth.
Activities included a combined sports day with six other local Child and Youth Care Centres. It was great fun for all the kids to pit their skills against all the other netball and soccer teams. There were also fun activities, with the balloon game being one of the most popular.
Huge thanks to our visitors, Mr & Miss Durban finalists, who shared their stories and spent time encouraging our young people to believe in their dreams.
What with the 18 new children who have to come to us since the beginning of the year, along with the 56 existing boys and girls in our care, you can imagine how long our list of needs is … it just never seems to end.
With winter in full swing, there is always a need for new warm clothing and shoes, as well as an extended grocery list so that we can provide each child with the balanced diet needed to keep hungry tummies satisfied during these chilly days.
Our grateful thanks to those who have already contributed towards our Winter Warmth campaign. Pictured above is the Sri Sathya Global Council of SA, who visited our home and provided our children with wonderful much needed winter items. Thank you for your wonderful support!
Huge thanks to PEP for the generous voucher that allowed us to buy much needed items for our children. We were able to get a number of warm jackets, socks and long sleeve shirts.
Special thanks also goes to Classic Quilters for their kind and generous donation of comforters for the children’s beds.
With July fast approaching, it’s fitting to pause and reflect on the invaluable contribution made by Nelson Mandela in raising the consciousness of people throughout the world, but more importantly here in our country, on the importance of prioritising the care of its children.
Sadly, we are far from realising his dream of a South Africa that cares for her children in the manner that they deserve. “South Africa’s children shall play in the open veldt, no longer tortured by hunger or disease or threatened with abuse,” he said. “Children are our greatest treasure.”
Facilities such as ours are all too aware that the children in our country are still faced with hunger, abuse and discrimination. But we remain resolute in our efforts to provide those placed in our care with a safe and secure environment. We provide the support they need to heal from the deep emotional and physical wounds inflicted on them, as we help them walk through this phase of their life’s journey believing that they matter!
It is with your support and others, like the Victor Daitz Foundation that we can achieve this. The Victor Daitz Foundation came to our aid at the 12th hour providing the total funding needed to complete the mammoth task of repairing the roof of one of our aged buildings, SAWAS House.
If you are wondering what you can do to commemorate Mandela Day, on 18 July this year, you may want to consider supporting our ‘Piece the Puzzle Together’ fundraiser which will be taking place on 13 July. Or perhaps supporting our Winter Warmth Campaign. Whilst the support we have received thus far has been truly wonderful, providing the 18 new children who were admitted into our care since the beginning of this year – as well as the remaining growing 56 – with adequate winter clothes is an expensive exercise. Then there is the cost of extra nutritious food … the list never ends.
As with Nelson Mandela, who not only wanted all children to feel loved, but also to have a better future, we at Durban Child and Youth Care Centre continue in our efforts to realise his dream – a people who regard our children as our greatest treasure.
In order for the Durban Child & Youth Care Centre to issue you with a donation Tax Certificate, we now require additional information, according to the newly gazetted Section 18A Tax rules.
If you require a Tax Certificate for donations made after 1 March 2023, please let us have the following details:
For more information about tax certificates and the new requirements, please contact Nicolette on 031 201 1301 or email nicolette@dch.org.za
Put this date in your diary now – Thursday 13 July 2023 is a fun interactive way to spend your Mandela Minutes for a good cause at the Durban Child & Youth Care Centre (265 Lena Ahrens Road, Glenwood).
Twenty amazing teams will take on six awesome challenges, set by Beach & Bush Team Building. Teams of two are invited to enter at a cost of R1200 per team. Additional donations are welcome! All funds raised go towards providing nutritional meals for the children.
To register, please contact Nicolette on 031 201 1301 or email nicolette@dch.org.za
“We can change the world and make it a better place. It is in your hands to make a difference.” – Nelson Mandela
As a non-profit organisation, our attention – and the bulk of available funds – is focused on meeting operational costs. First and foremost, we must ensure that the children in our care have all the basic necessities … food, clothing, education and shelter … as well as professional services to enable them to overcome their traumatic past, and catch up on developmental milestones missed through inadequate care or stimulation before they came to us.
However, the state of our ageing buildings is a huge cause for concern. For more than a century they’ve provided accommodation for children in need. Over the years, they’ve been adapted and upgraded as funds became available.
This has been top of our ‘to do’ list for some years already, and we just can’t put it off any longer. Two building experts have confirmed that the roof needs critical and urgent repairs.
No stone has been left unturned in our efforts to secure a donor. But the high cost of the repairs to the SAWAS House roof – over a million rand – is just too great. So we began approaching potential donors personally with an appeal for partnership funding. We are pleased to confirm that we have managed to secure one part funding for this project. The Victor Daitz Foundation, a longstanding benefactor of ours, committed an amount of R 505 567 towards the work, leaving us with a balance of R 639 891 still needing to be found.
But we can’t delay any longer; the safety of our children and staff is a priority. So we are forging ahead with the roof repairs in the hope that the necessary funding will materialise in time. Work started officially on Tuesday, 14 February. As a last resort, the shortfall will have to come out of our operating budget.
If you are able to make a contribution, or know of anyone who could possibly support this project, please email nicolette@dch.org.za. Any support that would relieve some or all of the financial pressure will be appreciated beyond words.
As I reflect on my ruminations from just a few weeks back, it dawns on me how much the time of day can affect the way we see a landscape.
When I last wrote, my work landscape was looking foreboding, dark with storm clouds on the horizon. Today those clouds have lifted. Still there, but far enough away for light to filter through and touch every part of what lies before me. The Department of Social Development kept their word and affected NPOs all received the money due to them by 8 February.
Caring concerned people within our circle came forward to offer assistance in all shapes and sizes. We are so thankful! And I am personally grateful, your response filled my tank and as I look around, I see how everything within my vision is bathed in light.
But there was a brief moment earlier this year, shortly before I returned from leave, when I mused on the possibility of just not coming back to work. In all my 33 years of service to the Durban Child & Youth Care Centre, I have never felt like this before.
I came to the realisation that the state of our country as we ended 2022 had left me discouraged and frankly angry. Endlessly having to pursue and insist on access to basic rights as a citizen, in addition to the rights of the children in our care, had left me depleted.
NPOs across KZN were struggling with non-payment of subsidies from the Department of Social Development. Hard working, dedicated employees were not paid their salaries, services to the most vulnerable people in our province were disrupted. All at a time when access to water and electricity – basic rights for all human beings – is inconsistent!
And then I listened to our social worker describing the circumstances leading to the placement of the new children entering our home and was ashamed of my thoughts.
What would happen to these precious little souls if we were not here? We are their voice, their advocates, their safe place. We must continue to fight the good fight, and hold tightly to the belief that light will prevail over darkness – even when the lights go out!
God bless you,
Mandy Goble
Director
