George (46) and Christa (28) Haumann live in Alberton North and they both lost their jobs due to Covid-19 in 2020.
Their only income is the money they make selling biltong and it sometimes only just covers their rent. There is no money for their other daily needs.
They have two children who are both eight years old, each from previous relationships and George’s mother is living with them.
For almost a year they have managed to just survive.
“There were many times when I wanted to give up on everything, but then I looked into the eyes of my child and just thought to myself that giving up is not an option. No matter how hard and how impossible things seem I have to keep on fighting,” said Christa.
She has also sent out their CV’s almost every day, but still, nothing has come their way.
George’s Biltong Den
George always had his biltong business on the side, but he never thought that it would one day become his only income.
When life got busier for him, he sold some of his biltong equipment and only kept some of the main equipment.
“When I got retrenched, I started working for my father until he passed away, also in 2020, and I went right back to the beginning of being jobless.
“Christa and I then started advertising George’s Biltong Den and browsing on social media to look for upcoming markets,” he said.
Christa told the RECORD that all the local markets rejected their requests due to them already having a biltong vendor so they had to start looking outside of the Alberton area.
“To be quite honest it has been a challenge and it has been tough, but we have made it till now. We are now travelling to different towns to have a biltong stall,” she said.
They also opened up a pop-up stall on Fridays in front of their house to get more support.
Christa also said that they have come this far with God’s grace. On Sundays, Christa helps to cook food with the WAS organisation for the people living on the streets.
Need some help
The family made it very clear that they do not want this article to look like they are asking and begging for things.
“We are sharing our story of survival, and we want to encourage others to keep on going on. Do not give up and just keep on praying.”
A client of George’s Biltong Den phoned the RECORD to do a story to try and get some assistance for the family.
“They both are great people who are hard-working and humble, they just need a little bit of assistance,” the friend said.
Some of their needs are to have a trailer for their equipment and products when travelling to markets and a card machine.
“We have lost so many clients due to us not having card facilities, so being able to have one would bring in some more money as people these days no longer carry cash with them,“ said George.
Christa also said that any winter clothes size eight to nine for her daughter will be highly appreciated.
“We will appreciate any assistance and we are willing to do any type of job available just to be able to get back on our feet,” they said.
People who would like to assist can contact Christa or George on 078 762 2796 or send an email to georgebiltong@yahoo.com
