Thursday was a national holiday (Women's Day) but the remarkable Care workers of Mafambisa knew that as the children would be off school it would be all the more important for the children to have time at the care point and have the hot nutritious meal which they provide for them.
We enjoyed some games with the children, joined in worship and prayer before joining them for lunch and then more time to play.
Different members of the team tell us about significant parts of the last two days...
Pauline writes...
Thursday's visit was at Mafambisa , the children gave us such a warm and touching welcome . They came and shook our hands and asked our names . We started the day with a meeting and we prayed for the children who stood in the centre of our gathering and asked for prayer requests. A little girl touched my heart and I reached out to her because she was very shy . She came and shared my chair and we started talking best we could . We had rice,chicken ,cabbage and beetroot for tea the food was cooked perfectly by the careworkers. At the end some of the team (as this is a traditional culture - it was the women) were called into the church building where we had gathered and we were asked to sweep the floor with a short handled African brush . I felt honoured to have been part of the team that visited them today and I will always remember them . On Friday we went back to Mafambisa , the children were already there because they were off school . We went to visit *Bens auntie who's name was *Jan . She made us very welcome and was happy to see us . Bens mom and dad had died so she took on bringing Ben up . He has an older brother who goes to work . Jan had problems with her husband so she left him and went to live with her brother in 1997 . She eventually got her own house . Jan used to be a care worker but had to give it up due to an illness . She's hoping to go back when she's better . We asked if she had any hobbies and she said housework . We prayed for her return to good health . After that it was time to leave but Jan walked with us for a while and we were told thatched did this as a good host, it's to show we were welcome .
Elisha and Molly write...
Today we went on holy home visits and we visited a family of brothers and sisters who didn't live with a gogo or parent figure. There were six people living in two rooms which had seperate entrances. Only one entrance had a working lock. The family consisted of 4 girls and 2 boys, one of which was a baby so he had to be with the mother, who was only 16 years old herself. All 4 of the girls shared one mattress in the room with the broken lock, whereas the older boy had a whole room to himself. To us, this felt unfair. The 16 year old mother had no support from her baby's father or his family, even though she still attends school and is trying to run a household. Unfortunately she can't attend the carepoint because of managing the baby when she comes from school, this means that she misses out on mealtime at the carepoint. The parents of the 4 girls and 1 boy are still alive, however they are seperated and don't want involvement with the children allowing the children to be vulnerable. The gogo (grandmother) of the children tries to help through sending money from her work as she's not physically there, however this isn't a reliable source of income. All of the 5 children were born in a different part of South Africa and moved to Mafambisa due to a house fire. Some of the children's documentations were destroyed, because of this they can't get help off the government through getting a grant. This causes great difficulty in finding a reliable source of financial support. One of the issues that they are facing in their home is a leak through both roofs, this causes the house to be cold and damp and belongings destroyed. Fortunately, careworkers are going to adjust this and improve their quality of life in their home. However during all of these troubles, they remain positive through the help of the careworkers which helps them to survive. We are both grateful to have met them and to have been welcomed into their home. This allowed us to help with chores to lighten the load off them so that the younger children could go to the carepoint to be children.
Elisha and Molly x
The comments by Paulilne, Elisha and Molly highlight how broken and fragile some of the parts of the community around Mafambisa are. When there is hardship, poverty and unstable relationships it does not take much to make a bad situation desperate.
We heard the details of other children, with different, but nonetheless huge challenges, and realised what a massiev difference the care workers and Hands at Work are making. We are pleased that the Penkridge partnership of Link for Life (which includes Wolgarston High School and several Churches in the area) are partnered with Mafambisa and will be able to visit and support this important work.
The photos below give some more ideas about the challenges the careworkers and children face.
Th care point is actually the grounds and building of a local church... it is wonderful that the pastor of the church sees that this important work of caring for the vulnerable children is a proper response for the church.
Hands at Work invited some of the UK churches and groups who support Mafambisa to donate to help build a better cooking and food preparation area. The money has come in and plans are being made to upgrade the cooking area and install a new long drop toilet.
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| A view of the cooking shelter and community |
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| Remarkable careworkers at Mafambisa -Emma, Rose, Alzera, ,Virginia, Ketiwe, and Sepiwe |
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| Somehow the care workers cook here for 75 vulnerable children |
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| Sam, Elisha and Molly prepare veg |
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| Some of the children collect thier cooked lunch |