This month is certainly the month of HUGE change for Village of Hope. It really feels like we are going through a radical process when God is performing one of those tricks of pulling the tablecloth from the table without knocking over the glasses. We are trusting that by then end of it all we will still be standing, not smashed in pieces on the floor and that everyone will be wowed by the miracle He has performed!
We have had to say goodbyes to children very close to our hearts which has been tough. You may have heard that Assi, the 12 year old boy who used to be in our care, died. Although this was not altogether unexpected given ongoing battle, we were still bowled over by it all. Thankfully it is not often that we have to encounter death and we all know that Assi is in the best place now. Whilst saying goodbye at his memorial we realised just how many people’s lives Assi had touched. This little boy, despite all his issues, and worked his way into the hearts of hundreds of people from around the globe who had visited over the years and has taught us all to find joy in every moment in life.
In that same week we also moved two other children, who have been with us for over 3 years, to a different children’s home in a nearby town. This was a tough decision to make but we are praying that it is in the best interests of the children and that ultimately it will lead to them being able to be made adoptable and therefore find families of their own. We know many of you have been praying for us during this difficult time and we really did feel uplifted. Thank you.
Community Work
Sports Outreach:
We are really pleased to be able to restart our sports programme. We had to delay this slightly because there was so much tension in the community as a result of the strikes. Last week was our first week back and, although there is still an unusual atmosphere in the township, the children were keen to come out and play. We have a new sports mentor for the girls from the Iraq informal settlement and also a sports intern, Mabel, who comes out with us every afternoon. It’s great to have some more female role models for sports – for some reason they seem a little harder to come by!
We are looking forward to getting our new batch of Dutch students in the next couple of weeks.
German Architectural Students Arrive:
You may remember that every year for the past few years we have been blessed by a team of students from Stuttgart University who come to build/renovate at Village of Hope. This has enabled the physical side of our project to develop far quicker than if we’d had to rely on our own resources. Every year they do an amazing job of building something new – and raising the funds to cover it too. This year the team is split over three different projects. One will be extending the children’s unit, another will be remodeling the existing volunteer’s unit to include offices and meeting rooms and the third will be completing the building that was started by previous students in 2012. The result will mean we can offer more facilities to the community and will also mean that we will have a separate volunteer block for long term volunteers and short term volunteers. Keep your eyes peeled as we post pictures of the developments over the next few weeks.
Volunteers:
Well! The volunteers have also been busy. They have had to move from where they were staying in our old unit so that the Germans can get started. Mel has moved off-site and the rest have moved to share with Tim and Maz! Tim and Maz will eventually move in to a space within the remodeled old volunteer’s unit and their original house will become accommodation for long term volunteers – it’s hard to describe in words! You will have to come and visit to see for yourselves!
We have welcomed three new volunteers. Shannon from America who is serving for 6 months. Nora, who is also from Germany and is staying with the students and Dave Knight, from the UK, who is a friend of Tim’s and (very helpfully) a builder! He is assisting with the building developments and, amongst many other things, is very good at making mugs of tea.
We are not able to take in any more volunteers until the building works are complete after Easter but please do get in touch if you would like to come and serve in the future!
How You Can Help
We are never short of ideas on how you can help us out!!!!
• Become a regular monthly giver - Regular givers are like gold dust to us!!!
• Fundraise – Commit to shave your head, host a quiz night, do a sporting event (it doesn’t have to be cycling)!!!!! – The possibilities are endless and can raise R10000s with enough enthusiasm!
• Pray – need we say more?!
For more information contact us fundraiser@thembalitsha.org.za
Volunteering
We rely heavily on committed volunteers to do the stuff here in South Africa. It can be a fantastic way to give (and receive!) However, we do have some criteria you have to meet in order to apply. For more information on volunteering for Thembalitsha please check out our website or email us at volunteer@thembalitsha.org.za.
Also, please do NOT book ANY flights before your application form has been accepted. Thank you!
Up And Coming Events
For further details check out our Facebook page:
www.facebook.com/thembalitshafoundation
Worldwide
It doesn’t matter what country you are in. Everyone can benefit from this! The fantastically generous and talented folk of up and coming British band, Being Buffalo, have released a track especially for us! And it sounds great too! We get 50% of every sale so please let your friends and family know about this! You can find the track for download here:
http://beingbuffalo.bandcamp.com/album/hope-charity-download
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