Visit to Lesotho

Earlier this month, three community workers from the Ubomi Obutsha Centre joined an outreach team to remote villages in Lesotho. Mark, the director of the center, says: “Unless you have a conscious reason to go outside, the South African black townships from the apartheid era were built to keep their residents isolated from the rest of the world, and that is still reasonably effective. This is a major reason why so many people there remain poor and why it is so difficult to change the situation. That’s why I wanted to give some of our staff the chance to really get out of the township. Exhausted but ‘full’ despite the fact that they drained themselves all week, we look forward to all the stories about the adventure and to see how Mabhele, Noma & Zameka bring back the things they have learned in the coming weeks through the work of the Centre. Those of you who have had the privilege to travel (really travel … far away … to a different cultural space) will know the value this adds to life experience.”

The trip was funded by a number of specific donors, but the center itself also contributed by making the recently donated new pickup of the Centre available for the trip. As well as by sending a few things from the center to help the people in the mountain villages. Mark: “Thanks to everyone who made this possible in one way or another! Besides the chance we got to support other projects, it is important to me that our volunteer staff build new knowledge and relationships that can help the Ubomi Obutsha Centre move forward in the coming years. We look forward to more of these kinds of adventures where we can learn and give back!”