MAC AIDS Leadership team visit

Monday 29th June saw 14 hope builders from all over South Africa visit Ethembeni as part of the MAC AIDS Leadership program. Each of these 14 inspiring and determined Africans are going to implement an AIDS prevention plan in their community. We shared with them our joys and challenges especially by advocating that Jesus be the centre of all interventions. His love is lasting and transformational! Amen.

The Mpophomeni Talent Show

On Thursday 25 June the Mpophomeni Family Centre hosted The Mpophomeni Talent Show. The turnout was massive (400 children and their teachers) and everyone had to pay for their ticket to get in. This was a big succes and all the proceeds of the day will go directly to the Mpophomeni Family Centre.

As you can see, Lisa was on the team the very strict judges, together with Samke, Zwe, and Bongani

Mpophomeni Clean-up Day!

We are organising the Mpophomeni Clean-up Day on the 29th of June!

The Ethembeni Organisation is dedicated to work as 'green' as possible and to teach our children and staff to care for our communities and to raise everyone’s awareness to take care of our planet. We sort all our waste and all major disposable reusable items end up in the appropriate recycling bins. Litter especially is an eyesore that despoils our community.

Accordingly, Ethembeni is organising a Mpophomeni Clean-up Day on the 29th of June where all staff and children of the Family Centre and Ethembeni are encouraged (and rewarded) to take part in our Mpophomeni Clean-up Day. We have selected the field in front of the Family Centre as our designated Clean Up Area as it will look great over the next Holiday Club period.

We are thrilled that our uMngeni Municipality have partnered with us and that they will supply all the resources we need for our day. Their Recycling Staff will be on site to help and guide us and they will provide us with bags and gloves and, very importantly, will remove all the waste we collect.

It’s currently winter in South Africa and residing in the mountainous region of KwaZulu Natal it gets very cold! Homes are not insulated nor is there any heating and many kids come to the Family Centre in the only clothing they own, which is their summer clothes. That is why we have decided to reward all participating children with a warm hat with Mpophomeni Family Centre logo embroided on it for all children who take part in this fun filled day. See our dog Harry with the hat!

Be on the look out for the photos of the kids on our Mpophomeni Clean-up Day, as always on this blog!

Mdu’s presentation at the Family Centre

Mdu’s presentation at the Family Centre

Last month the Family Centre was visited by Mr Mdu Mchunu from DUCT. DUCT is the Duzi-uMngeni Conversation Trust and is dedicated to the environmental health of the uMsunduzi and uMngeni rivers. Lisa, Lindiwe and I met Mdu in March at a meeting from DUCT in Howick and the four of us started talking about the issues with our environment and specifically in Mpophomeni.

Mdu joined us all at the Family Centre for the whole afternoon to speak about Environmental issues and to raise the children and staff's awareness of our precious environment. Mdu gave a very interesting and interesting presentation titled “My area is my Environment” and all the children were very involved and engaged which was so inspiring as we need our children and staff to be aware and cautious about our environment and their and our future.

This presentation ties in with Ethembeni's ambition to care better for our environment and to raise everyone’s awareness to take care of our planet. Accordingly, Ethembeni is organising a Mpophomeni Clean-up Day on the 29th of June where all staff and children of the Family Centre and Ethembeni are encouraged to take part in our Mpophomeni Clean-up Day.

Foundation Play Skills for Bereaved Children

"Play is work for children- never underestimate the power of play to bring about healing" - Violet Oaklander

Recently two members of Ethembeni care worker staff facilitated a week long training workshop on Foundation Play Skills. Attendees consisted of several Ethembeni staff members along with staff members from the local Friends for Life organization.

The training centered around using play therapy interaction to help children affected by death and loss. Staff learned how to plan several different play sessions such as stories and puppets, clay and drawings and coping play. The training was originally developed by Rob Smetherham Bereavement Service for Children (RSBSC).

The training was a great success and all those who participated look forward to implementing their new found play skills therapy soon!

A special thanks to Linda Smallbones, Social Worker for Ethembeni who originally introduced the training workshop last year to a few members of the family center staff last year. Linda is thrilled to see the very same staff who attended the training now successfully facilitating the very same workshop!

The whole group of teachers and students together

Manchester United goes on a Soccer Tournament

Last Saturday our Soccer team participated in a soccer tournament near Edendale, up in the hills near Pietermaritzburg (KZN). Our team is made up of the older kids from the Family Centre and is named after the most famous team in the world, Manchester United. Very ambitious I must say, but you know, you shoot for the moon and even if you miss, you'll still land among the stars!

We arrived early in the morning with 18 of the boys and the three coaches Khlakla, Zwe and me (Richard) and after two hours of warming up and waiting we were up against one of the local teams. After a quick goal for the other team from a penalty, we were fortunate to quickly get the deserved equaliser before half time. The second half could have gone both ways but it was really our quality and better stamina which decided the game in our favour through another goal just before the final whistle. 2 - 1 for us and we were in the semi-final!

Some though love from the coach

The semi-final was awaiting and we played against one of the other local teams which we expected to be a lot stronger than our first opponent. Where we had hot (31 degrees) and sunny weather in the morning, the weather had changed now and it started drizzling.... There were chances for both teams but no goals until half time. After a pep talk from the coaches the boys went for the final push for the final..... The pitch got heavier from the rain and everyone was getting tired. We had some half chances but no goals so the game had to be decided by penalty kicks! Unfortunately we missed the first one but they also missed their third penalty so it was 4-4 after the first five kicks.

It was as the weather gods did not want a winner for the game as thunder broke out exactly at that moment before the sixth penalty was to be taken and the game was rained out. That was also the signal for us to pack up and hide. Even though we all were soaked we made it back to the car and we drove back to Mpophomeni.

The whole day there was a fantastic atmosphere around the field with lots of spectators and great music. All together a great day on the field which we spent together playing, bonding, chatting and dancing! And many thanks to the Family Centre for the sandwiches and snacks!

Warm Greetings from Richard Van Eek and Lisa Ring, two newest additions to the volunteer staff at Ethembeni. It’s hard to believe it has already been two weeks since we have recently arrived in the scenic Midlands region of KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. This is our first time in Africa and we are thrilled to be here and look forward to helping to make a difference in any way that we can by bringing a smile and helping to bring faith and hope to those affected by the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the region.

To give you a brief introduction of us, Richard Van Eek is originally from the Netherlands where he studied Finance at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. He has worked in the financial sector for several years and has worked across the globe in Amst
erdam, Frankfurt, Sydney and Hong Kong. Lisa originally hails from the United States where she studied Political Science at Northeastern University. After working several years primarily in the field of Human Resources, Lisa most recently worked in Hong Kong where she was responsible for Asia Pacific recruitment for an International Business School. Both of us are very much looking forward to spending the next couple of months with Ethembeni and we especially look forward to highlighting our experiences via this blog.

Volunteering in Africa has long been an aspiration for both of us. In particular we were specifically interested in working with those affected by the HIV/ AIDS epidemic in South Africa. Through contact with Mr. Denzil Tryon we were fortunate to come in contact with Mr. Rouen Bruni, Chairman for Ethembeni. With continued outreach efforts over the phone and email over several months and the decision to leave established jobs in the private sector, we were ready to embark on our journey to South Africa.

We’ve just recently arrived last Monday, March 2nd and were greeted by Grant Edkins, Director at Ethembeni, along with Rouen Bruni. The wealth of knowledge and experience brought by both Grant and Rouen to the organization was a major factor in our decision to choose Ethembeni. We have spent the past two weeks observing and training and have primarily spent focused time at the Residential Care Unit as well as at the Mpophomeni Family Centre. We were also given the opportunity to cross train at neighboring NGO organizations such as CCP (Community Care Partners) in Pietermaritzburg as well as the Umvoti Aids Centre in Greytown. Both experiences were invaluable.

During our first few days at Ethembeni, we spent time visiting the facilities and meeting the amazing children, members and staff. On Thursday morning we joined the community volunteers and a staff member and took part in the weekly home care visits where food parcels were dropped for the family in need and counseling and prayers were provided as well. It was quite a moving experience and we were especially moved by how welcoming many community members were to having us in their home and how open many were to share their personal hardships. Although most of the conversations were conducted in Zulu, many wanted to ensure that as native English speakers, the closing prayer would be conducted in English for us all to understand which was quite touching.

There is more to come as we get up and running and it is our sincere hope that no matter how small or large, that we are able to make a positive impact on the community members we are servicing. Through continued education efforts, faith and hope we know this will continue to have a positive impact surrounding the stigma of the HIV/AIDS epidemic that this region continues to face.

A sincere thanks to Grant and Rouen for your passion, enthusiasm and vision for Ethembeni Ministry of Hope and we look forward to meeting and working with everyone over the next few months! --Lisa and Richard