25/03>>>>>>>>>>As u ooit gedink het dit is baie moeilik om klere uit te soek in n winkel wat jou gaan pas dan wil ek jou vra om simpatie te he vir mense soos ou Liz wat net n papier ontvang met inligting daarop wat in hierdie geval vra vir klere vir n ouerige dame so by die 65 jaar oud en sy is middelmatig gebou, sy is nie vol fiemies nie en kleur maak nie saak nie net solank dit nie te bond is nie en n hemp en n broek vir haar man so 5 voet ses en hy behoort n skoen grootte van no 8 - 9 te kan pas, en haar 33 jarige dogter wat gestremd is maar sy kan nog loop en rond beweeg, sy soek ook asb. n haar borsel en krullers om haar so bietjie mooi te laat lyk. Die winter is om die draai en hulle het nie genoeg komberse nie. Sterkte Liz onder omstandighede doen jy baie goed in die versending stoor, ons is almal lief vir jou

Dear Readers of Happy Families!

Thank you for the opportunity to share some information about Doulos Community Project with you!

Doulos came into existance out of one persons dream to provide more than just food to his Community. He started to plan on how to change peoples lives for the better, not only physicalle but spiritually and holistically in general. From this dream Doulos Community Project became a reality.

Today, Doulos provide food to 21 000 white people every month, staying in squater camps up to poorer communities, childrens homes, old age homes and families. We serve 89 shelters in total. Apart from food, we have a computer centre where we have trained 40 individuals this year on Microsoft Office to qualify as Secretarys or Administrators and all off them have obtained jobs and are still working! In the afternoons this facility is utilized as a after shcool facility for under priveleged children from the Community where they are guided by teachers through the Kenweb system (Home Schooling computer based trainined for gr.1 – gr.12). The adults that are trained comes from informal settlements and other areas and are transported by Doulos or volunteers to attend courses.

We have also established three pre-schools specifically at the informal settlements to provide very needed pre shcool training to toddlers and young children. This facility serves two functions, of which education is important. Secondly it also helps us to identify any problems at home like molestation etc. which guides us then to remove the children. We also have clinics at these camps where they are serviced by nurses and docters to enable them to receive very needed health care.

Unfortunately these people do not stay free of charge at these camps and are being blatantly exploited by land owners who put up these shacks and charge these people between R600 and R1000 a month to stay here. Mostly no electricity is supplied, some camps do not have an sanitary provisions and people use the bushes . These land owners are pure evil and they choose the most vulnerable of society to exploit and make money out of. Some will only house elderly and disabled people because they know the recieve a grant from the government and will be in a position to pay rent at the end of the month. Some only choose younger people that they can drop at a corner to beg for money, and give a hiding tonight if the target for the day has not been reached. Some only take families because they know the children recieve grants and even if the parents don’t work, there would still be an income for him. The latest trend is for these owners to register as houses of safety and then take in foster children. I found a 4 year old girl at one of these camps which made me not sleep at night becasue of the lack of response from her side and deadness in her eyes. I did notify the authorities and she was removed because the owner could not account for her being there, even worse there were no relatives of her there! She came from somewhere and was also molested upon investigation.

Doulos provides food, but also acts as watch dogs to protect the frail, children and others who are brutally abused by these people. There are no quick solutions to this problem because if the land owner becomes aware that you know more than you should you are chased away. Therefore our network moves in in terms of the police or child services but we never visibly get involved in order to ensure that we hold the trust of the people as well as the land owners.

The following main projects are run by Doulos on a continuous basis:

Food Provision

Food parcels are distributed monthly to 21 000 people. These are bare necessaties and is not enough to sustain people for the whole month. This is given supplementary to what they can afford or already receive. We also combine efforts at all the shelters with other care givers to ensure that functions are not duplicated and that people do not receive in such abundance that resources are wasted.

2. Computer Training

A fully working computer centre is situated in Waverley. Here people from informal settlements and poorer communities are fetched daily or attend classes daily. They are trained free of charge in Microsoft Office and are assisted afterwards in obtaining work. Last year 40 individuals were trained and all were placed in the work place

3. Pre-shcools

We have established 3 pre-schools in 3 informal settlements. The total number of children cared for is 120. The curriculums of thes shcools are also alligned that should parents move from one shelter to another the todllers just continue with their programme. We are planning another one in Elandspoort soon, some resources needed will still be obtained to make this dream a reality.

4. Home School Centre

We have opened a Home School Centre in Sonop(Brits) Here ten pupils from gr. 8 – 11 are receiving Home Schooling. This came about because of the vast distances they had to travel without public transport to attend school. Sponsors were generous and apart from two pupils, all pupils have received study material and are busy studying!!

5. Mosaic and Job Creation

We have a full time psychologist conducting theraphy sessions by means of Mosaic at shelters. These items manufactured are being sold and the proceeds are canalised back to the people

6. Laundry services

In Waverley we have a Laundromat which service the Community. All employees are from poverty stricked families and all proceeds from the Laundromat go to them as part of job creation.

7. Sewing Centre

We have a fully equipped sewing centre where people can come and utilise the facility to make clothes and other items to sell. All proceeds from this are for the people and is part of job creation.

Mense word eers bewus van Blanke armoede wanneer hulle kan sien hoe ander mense lewe in nedersettings en kampe waar individue en gesinne in uiters haglike toestande bly. Hierdie mense bly in sink huisies 3M x 3M, plastiese huisies wat aanmekaar gesit word met versterkte stukke plastiek, Wendy huisies, Plank huisies, ou karavane, water tenks en allerhande goed wat net so bietjie beskerming bied teen die wind en die weer.

Baie van hierdie mense het nie lopende water nie, van elektriese krag word nie eers gepraat nie. Hulle loop soms vêr na ’n vlei of ’n dam om nie lopende water te gaan skep waarmee koffie, tee pap en ander kosse gekook word. Soms is daar geen toilet geriewe nie slegs ’n slop emmer wat êrens in die veld leeggemaak word.

Hulle het geen mediese skema nie en moet al vroeg oggend vêr stap en in toue gaan staan om êrens teen die middag miskien die Dokter of soms net ’n Suster te sien ’n paar pille te kry om erge pyn te verlig. Daarna pak so ’n siek , kreupel of persoon met kroniese siektes weer die Kilometers per voet aan na sy skuiling, daar aangekom maak hy miskien iets wat al oud is reg om te eet of eet miskien iets waarvan die rak lewe lankal reeds verstryk het en bygesê as daar iets is om te eet

Hierdie mense het gewoonlik nie die gerief van ’n bad, warm water en of seep nie en het ook geen privaatheid wanneer hulle sou wou bad nie, dan as die persoon bed toe gaan is dit soms op ’n matras of selfs net op ’n kombers waarop hulle gaan lê en slaap sonder ’n kussing onder die kop. Hulle stilte tyd geskied slegs in die donker en is die voorreg ontneem om uit die Bybel te lees

Daagliks hoor hierdie mense hoe van hulle gepraat word en oor hulle gepraat word. Hulle hoor weinig of min dat mense met hulle praat of vir hulle bid, vir hulle omgee en met hulle iets wil deel. Hulle hoor ook net altyd hoe sleg hulle is, hoe vuil hulle is, hoe agterlik hulle is, dat hulle net te lui is om te werk, dat hulle net wil kleintjies maak.

Elke maand einde loop van hierdie mense kilometers vêr, ek weet van hulle wat so vêr as dertig kilometers moet loop om hulle pensioentjie te gaan haal, terug skuiling toe gaan en die geldjie net so aan die grond eienaar gaan betaal vir sy maandelikse huur van sy skuiling. Dit is werklik so dat van hulle nie ’n sent van die pensioen geld oor het om kos te koop nie

Die mense in kampe en Nedersettings word in baie gegoede huise bespreek as mense wat ’n agterstand in die lewe het omdat hulle ongeletterd is. Hulle word gesien as menssku, skelm en word altyd verdink as oneerlik en onbetroubaar

As God jou een maal hierdie mense laat leer ken het deur elke dag met hulle te werk, hulle lief en hulle leed elke dag met hulle te deel. Dat jy een maal ja net een nag in die winter saam met hulle daar te bly, saam met hom een keer te stap na ’n winkeltjie en langs die pad te gaan staan waar hy hopelik ’n Samaritaan sal vind wat hom ’n aalmoesie in die hand stop sodat hy vinnig voor die winkel toemaak ’n halwe bruin brood kan gaan koop en dan weer saam met hom te loop na sy skuiling waar hy die helfte van die broodjie sal gaan eet . Ek wil vir u sê ek leef hierdie mense elke dag van my lewe en dit is ook al wat ek elke dag wil doen