“Teenagers' Convention”:
30 teens from Qwaqwa, 40 teens from Mpumaze and 27 teens from Ermelo making it a total of 97 teens headed to the Umgeni Valley Nature Reserve for our second teenagers' convention that took place from the 5th to the 7th of October. This convention is part of Module 2 of My Future, My Responsibility financed by Bouygues Construction's Foundation Terre Plurielle, Water Solutions Southern Africa, Michelin Tyres South Africa, as well as the Accor Foundation. It is aimed at developing our teens' presentation and public speaking skills as well as their ability to analyse and synthesise... Read more
“Extreme Sports Camp”:
40 of our Bushbuckridge beneficiaries spent the month preparing for our second extreme sports camp as part of Module 4 of My Future, My Responsibility (funded by the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund). The purpose of the extreme sports camp is to help our teens know that they can overcome their fears by participating in extreme sports. What they achieve is, knowing that that they can go tubing in a river or hiking for 3hours which can be gruelling... read more
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Children of the Dawn - Achievements
Reintegration into the community
99.5% of the children who have entered the programme are alive and healthier. Considering the very difficult living conditions of these children, this is an achievement by itself. It is only in 2007 that we registered the first death among the children we care for. And today, it is a total loss of 11 children we mourn.
But perhaps, our biggest achievement is the reintegration of the children into their surrounding community.
All children are now back at school, and although the standard of learning is low, we achieved a 93% pass rate in 2010. Thanks to our support in terms of school fees, school uniforms and meetings with teachers, our children can now enjoy their schooling as any other child.
The reintegration into the community is also achieved through our aftercare centres and the networks created around the children. The communities have now taken charge of their orphans and can offer them a real sense of belonging. The many volunteers working on the ground are a living example of the strength and resilience of South African communities. We also welcome on a regular basis young international volunteers sent by the international NGO AFS (American Field Service) who spend at least six months in our communities, and whose role is to liven up our care centres by organising educational and leisure activities for the children.
In seven years, we have managed to strengthen the eight rural communities we are working in to the point where each sponsored child is supported in a holistic manner. Their basic needs being met and surrounded by love, our children can look forward to a future!
