A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination. Nelson Mandela
MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet celebrates 21 years this year!
21 years of making a difference.
21 years of giving back.
21 years of giving to those who need it most.
21 years of changing lives.
Have you ever wondered HOW the money you contribute to MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet makes a difference? I have. I have been fortunate enough over the years to visit some of the facilities that MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet is involved with. There are so many good people doing amazing things in South Africa but it is not always easy trying to make a difference, which is where MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet comes in and helps lighten the load a little.
To celebrate MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet 21st year I headed to one of their recipient organisations in Mamelodi to find out exactly how they are giving back and making a difference.
Who are Heartbeat?
Heartbeat is an organisation that works throughout South Africa with orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC). The Heartbeat team identify a need, set up facilities like homework centres and then empower the team running it to take over and become their own independent NGO but with ongoing support from Heartbeat.
This business model makes so much sense to me, it is not just about helping communities but rather empowering individuals to take ownership of the change they are making.
What do they do?
The facility I visited is an afterschool care facility that runs out of the Jan Kotlolo Primary School. There are 30 amazing staff members who dedicate their time to over 314 OVC’s in the Nelmapius area. This is an alarming number of children in a rather small area of Mamelodi.
Out of those 300 children, only around 40 are cared for in the after-school facility I visited. The rest of the children are visited in their home by the care workers.The children who attend the after-school centre receive help with their homework, support and counselling should they need it. They also receive a cooked meal every day and holiday programes are run during all the holidays.
This centre is more than somewhere they can do homework to these children, it is their safe place where they are loved and supported without question.
The team who run the facility aim to provide the children with as much support as possible which includes providing them with toiletries, food parcels, clothes and stationery
They also provide life skills training for the children as well as assistance to the parents in obtaining valid birth certificates and identity documents.Even though the children they deal with are orphaned or in vulnerable situations, the aim is always to try to keep the child with their family (unless, of course, the child is in danger).
If Heartbeat is your MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet beneficiary, every time you swipe your card you are contributing to a food parcel, school shoes, toiletries and so much more.
If you are in the Pretoria area and want to help out a bit more this facility always needs help with clothes, stationery and toiletries. Get in touch with me and I will make sure they get to the kids.
Do you have a MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet card? If you do who are your beneficiaries?
Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post
