Visit to the Ubomi Obutsha Centre – en

Visit to the Ubomi Obutsha Centre

Every now and then, the Ubomi Obutsha Centre is visited by old friends. Frank Oude Veldhuis is one of these friends. Before SUON was founded, he did volunteer work at the Ubomi Obutsha Centre. Last summer, he visited the centre again, this time together with his family. Below, he tells us more about it.

Back in the days

Frank shares: ‘In 2010, I worked as a volunteer at Ubomi for four weeks through Be More. Beforehand, they asked about any special talents, and since I am very involved in music and taught piano in the Netherlands, I raised money to buy a piano. Mark and I had it delivered to the centre during my first week.’

‘I was a bit nervous about the huge number of registrations for the lessons and the limited time I had, but fortunately I soon realised that keeping appointments is taken a little less seriously in Kwazakhele than in the Netherlands, for example. In the end, I was able to teach the entire staff and about five children who were very interested. I also helped out in the childcare centre and the soup kitchen. It was an incredibly special experience, partly because the World Cup was being held in South Africa that year.

Back again

‘At the time, I was dating my current wife, and I always said that I wanted to show her where I had been,’ Frank continues. ‘After our son was born, those plans were put on hold for a while, but now that he’s a teenager, we’ve picked up where we left off — and this summer holiday was the perfect time.’

‘We took a road trip from Cape Town, through the interior to Port Elizabeth, and back along the coast. I contacted Mark and he took us back to Ubomi. It was amazing to be back there — and now with my family. Nondo, Tango and Mabhele were all there and even recognised me as “the piano man”. Mark brought us up to date on the family programme and the many other improvements that have taken place over the past 15 years. In the evening, we had dinner with Mark and his wife, and the next day we went to the annual fundraising dinner “Christmas in July”. That was also a very impressive experience for us.’

Frank concludes: ‘Mark and Alma are truly remarkable people, with a big heart for the residents of Kwazakhele. Of course, we also thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful country and its friendly inhabitants. There is a chance that this was not our last visit to South Africa.’

The importance of material support – en

The importance of material support

At the base of the Family Focus Program of the Ubomi Obutsha Centre lies the material support for families in need. This includes weekly food parcels, seedlings and home food garden support. Furthermore, it includes donated clothing when it is distributed, and household items as they are donated to us to pass on to those in need.

If a family will get this material support doesn’t depend on the level of a family’s need though. It depends on two other things. First of all on their level of active participation in our programme. And secondly on demonstrable progress towards becoming more self-sufficient as a household.

For the centre the end goal of the material support is not only to meet material needs of those in need. It is to take some of the material stresses of life off the shoulders of these struggling families. As a result, they can have the mental and emotional space to put their energy into addressing the more important ‘big picture’ issues. This supports them into making their lives self-sustainable.

A mother’s thank-you letter

A few times a year the centre distributes donated clothing by allowing family representatives to ‘shop’ for their family’s clothing needs. This year’s the first-years families of the Family Focus Program had the opportunity to participate for the first time. Of course, based on their participation as a family in the various activities of the programme. A few days later the centre received this short letter from one of the mothers. Her well-deserved sense of joy, achievement, pride and improved self-worth are obvious.

Thank you to those who support us and the Ubomi Obutsha Centre. You make these early moments of triumphant progress for someone like Portia possible!

Child Protection – en

Keeping Children Safe

‘People often think that everyone always has children and vulnerable adults’ best interests at heart, but unfortunately this is not always the case, even in the world of development cooperation. Too often cases come to light where children, or vulnerable groups, have been victims of abuse, exploitation or neglect.‘ This is what Wilde Ganzen wrote in its invitation to us for a relationship morning. On Saturday 5th of October, this meeting was entirely dedicated to protecting children. We at SUON were immediately excited to participate.

After all, as a foundation, we believe it’s incredibly important that the children we support are safe. But how does this work when we are based in the Netherlands and are therefore not in direct contact with the children ourselves? What is our role and our own responsibility? We ask ourselves these questions regularly, so we hoped this meeting would bring us answers.

Results of the day

And answers we got. About how we could safeguard children as a foundation ourselves, but also how we might better support the Ubomi Obutsha Centre in this. This is not simply settled in a day and will be a process of steps. It is a subject that we would very much like to put further on the agenda in the coming period, first for ourselves, but hopefully also with the centre together. Because besides being important and a first priority, it is also just hugely fascinating to discuss about this together! So from here a big thank you to Wilde Ganzen for this kick-off and inspiration on this topic. To be continued.

A busy week – en

A busy week at the centre

The Ubomi Obutsha Centre does everything possible to ensure that children can develop themselves every day. Every day and week is different and sometimes a lot of things happen at once in just one week time. Last week was such a week and we would like to take you through all these wonderful happenings.

The results

Sometimes children need extra educational support. Thanks to the help of a psychological clinic, these children were able to take psychometric tests. Their parents were also asked for additional information about their development. This helps in deciding whether a child should be referred to a special education school or not. This way, they get the right support where needed.

The Educare children went on a day out to Holmeleigh Farmyard, the local petting zoo. They went along with staff of the local Alkegen factory who support the work of the Ubomi Obutsha Centre. They had a wonderful day there!

The mentoring programme for the fourth semester started a little earlier with a baseline assessment of the 48 students. They will be helped to catch up in school and the assessment will help to gain insight into their progress. Also wonderful news is that with that, three new volunteers started at the centre!

The families of our Phase 2 (2nd year) Family Focus Programme were the lucky recipients of this year’s 3rd clothing distribution. Great that so many good quality 2nd-hand clothes were donated recently to support these families!

Three Educare facilitators worked on the third-quarter reports for the little ones in their groups. They also had engaging meetings with all parents to discuss their child’s challenges and progress. Great progress was made this trimester!

This all took place alongside all the normal day-to-day activities. However tired they are, the dedication and work ethic of the staff remains top notch and we are very grateful for all they do and for the support many of you give them! They are looking forward to a quiet week during the school holidays next week before making the final push to finish the year strong.

Would you like to continue supporting this great work? Then check out how you can do so soon here on our website.

The continuation of the food packages

The beginning

The Ubomi Obutsha Centre also provides food packages to the participants of its programmes. Earlier, these packages were made up with donated food from supermarkets, however, due to reluctant donations, this no longer works. Therefore, the centre now buys the produce itself and makes the packages. This pilot was made possible by a contribution from SUON and thus your donations. Every month, the centre’s staff hand out the packages, which consist of fresh and longer-lasting food, as well as care products. Read more about why the centre started this in our earlier post.

The first results

The project is now four months on and the first results are known. As a result, a few days ago we received an enthusiastic update from Mark, the director of the Ubomi Obutsha Centre: ‘Based on our estimates in April, we assumed that the money would last until the end of June or July (3-4 months). However, thanks to Mabhele’s thoughtfulness in looking for good deals, the fluctuating prices (especially of potatoes) and a few families who no longer need food parcels, we can extend the project until the end of September! This is fantastic, as the supply of ‘ordinary’ donated food continues to decline slowly, making this support a huge help! Our families are incredibly grateful! Thank you so much!

Do you want to make sure we can keep the Ubomi Obutsha Centre developing and piloting new programmes? Then donate to SUON. You can donate once or monthly. If you commit your donation for five years with a periodic donation, you can even deduct it from your taxes. And if you don’t currently can’t donate additional money, you can even donate through your online purchases at the Doelshop without additional costs.

Developments FFP

Developments Family Focus Programma

Recently, many beautiful developments have taken place within the Family Focus Program. Therefore, it’s high time for an update.

Working on Trust

Trust is one of the keys within cohesive and resilient families. If family members can trust each other, they will support each other and make progress together. To symbolize this, the educators of the Family Focus Program did a simple exercise.

In pairs, they took turns leading each other blindfolded through a room full of obstacles. How does it feel when you have to trust someone else because you can’t see anything yourself? And how does it feel when someone else trusts you to lead them safely through the room? In this way, they learn a lot about building and maintaining trust, which trickles down to trust in each other within the family.

Developments from former participants of the program

Janeth has now completed the three-year Family Focus Program. She now organizes a ‘support group’ for her neighbors every few weeks. In addition, she now has a thriving vegetable garden at her house. She was able to start this garden with a ‘compact garden’ box from the Ubomi Obutsha Centre.

Another success comes from Mama Zoz, who after completing the program has her own business to beautifully decorate cakes. She takes care of her grandchildren and has had a difficult time, as two family members have passed away. However, she recently came by the center to tell them that she is doing better and she is working. The center received a note that said: “Thank you. I just want to show you that I am serious and that you have not wasted your time and resources on me.”

Do you want to contribute to the mission of SUON and the Ubomi Obutsha Centre? Donate via our donationpage. Do you want to stay informed about all developments of the Ubomi Obutsha Centre? Then also follow their Facebookpage.

Fundraising Campaign Free Flemish Primary School Ukkel

Wonderful proceeds from the fundraising campaign of the Free Flemish Primary School Ukkel

The Free Flemish Primary School in Ukkel raised over €2900 in April for the Ubomi Obutsha Centre with their fundraising campaign during the Lenten season before Easter! The Belgian Lotte Brants, a teacher at this primary school, organized this action.

Background

In 2016, Lotte did an internship at the Ubomi Obutsha Centre for 3-4 months. She says that this was an experience that changed her life. This was due to the awareness of the difficult circumstances in which the people and children in the township live, but also the positive impact that the center made. She holds the center dear to her heart and has held several fundraising campaigns over the years. In 2018, she visited the center again with her partner and it touched them again. ‘We are so used to our luxury. It’s so normal for us to flush the toilet, shower, or go to the store. We then met a child who couldn’t go to school because he didn’t have shoes. It’s hard that such simple things deny a child access to education, a child’s right.’

Various Actions

When Lotte’s school was looking for a cause for the fundraising campaign this year, Lotte didn’t have to think long to nominate the Ubomi Obutsha Centre. The school also responded enthusiastically! The collection consisted of various actions, which were also thought up by the students. Lotte: ‘We sold popcorn, there was a car wash for cars and bicycles and there was an Obstacle Run through the school. The students had themselves sponsored for this by, for example, their parents and family members. They themselves thought about which obstacles we had to make. It was wonderful to see how involved they were!’ She continues: ‘Many of the students know me and my story about the Ubomi Obutsha Centre. They knew what they were being sponsored for and knew ‘the children of Teacher Lotte in South Africa’ through those stories. Their parents were also very involved in the action.’ See the photos for an impression of the action. For privacy reasons, the faces of the children have been made unrecognizable.

Proceeds

After all the actions, there was a moment when the amount was revealed. ‘I didn’t know what to expect, but that it was over €2900, I really didn’t think’, Lotte proudly tells. The money is transferred to the Ubomi Obutsha Centre via SUON. Lotte: ‘I still have regular contact with Mark. We have agreed that he will keep me informed about what the money is spent on. Then I can also tell the students and parents again, so that they also know what happened to their money.’

Have you become enthusiastic after Lotte’s story and do you also want to set up an action for the Ubomi Obutsha Centre? You can always contact us for questions or advice.

Food packages for families

The Ubomi Obutsha Centre not only supports its participants with its programs. It also does this by distributing food packages. The food for this is donated by local supermarkets. However, these donations have been declining in recent years. Therefore, the center is now developing a different model, which they want to introduce gradually. This allows them to see how it works, they can adjust more easily and it remains feasible. This increases the chances of success.

The center will now buy the products for the packages themselves. They then put together the food packages and distribute them to the participants of the Family Focus Program. The packages contain fresh and longer-lasting food as well as care products. The intention is for the participants to receive a package monthly.

The Importance of Food Packages

The packages are extremely valuable to the families. They first and foremost provide the need for food. In addition, they also provide peace of mind to the parents and/or caregivers. Their everyday worries about having too little food are taken away by the packages. This creates more emotional and mental space, allowing them to actively participate in the Family Focus Program. In it, they learn how to build a future in which they can be self-sufficient. This shifts the thinking from what is needed in the short term to what is needed in the long term.

Last week, a pilot of this program started. The first packages were bought, made, distributed, and received by the families. The center had not told any of the families what was coming, so they were all surprised, happy, and very grateful!

Contribution from SUON

SUON was able to financially contribute to this pilot thanks to your donations. Do you want to continue supporting the work of SUON and the Ubomi Obutsha Centre? Sign up as a monthly donor to SUON or make a eenmalige donatie.

Back from India

At the end of January, Noma and Zameka, two employees of the Ubomi Obutsha Centre, left for India to participate in two local community projects for two weeks. Noma and Zameka are now back home and already fully engaged at the center.

Impact of the trip

Mark says, ‘The trip made a deep impression on them. It starts with the fact that residents of a township have little chance to make such a trip. A township is literally a secluded place, but also figuratively, because there is poverty. Making a long trip is often not possible and few of them travel to India. Noma and Zameka felt like ‘an attraction’ in a positive sense: it felt to them as if they were famous.’

The fact that Noma and Zameka were given this opportunity has had a lot of impact on them. ‘The realization of how big the world is, how friendly people are, and how delicious the food is. However, also the realization that unfortunately poverty is visible everywhere in the world made an impression. But they also saw that the Indian people do everything they can to generate an income instead of waiting for the government to help. They saw many similarities, both culturally (for example, around marriage), but also in terms of work. How home visits were done in India was similar to how we do them. There were also differences visible, for example, how free we are as Christians in South Africa to go to church.’

Mark continues: ‘Due to the hustle and bustle of everyday life, there has been little time to reflect well with them. Yet we already see changes in their interaction with people and their work. It still needs some time to become aware of the further impact, but that it is deep is very clear to us!’

Contributions

This trip was made possible in part by donations to SUON. Do you want to continue supporting the work of SUON? Then read here how you can make a donation.

Participation in the Ubomi Obutsha Centre’s programs

The new year is now in full swing at the Ubomi Obutsha Centre. This year, 65 families are participating in the Family Focus Program, reaching a total of 406 parents and children. One adult participates per family. In addition, a total of 100-150 children actively participate. Of the 65 families, 25 families are starting the three-year program, 13 families are in their second year, and 8 families are in their final third year. The group of 16 families who completed the program in 2023 want to stay connected. An alumni program is being created for this.

In addition to the Family Focus Program, the Life Skills programs have also started again. Children participate in this in different age groups. Each age group has its own afternoon in the week for the activity. Currently, 586 children are registered, a huge number! Of these, an average of 432 children participate weekly. However, to ensure the quality of the programs with the available capacity at the center, the current numbers are too high. Therefore, it is being looked at how the number of children can be controlled and reduced to 250 participating children over the coming months.