The Thoughtful Path project in Munsieville celebrated 10 years but want to do much more

“What a difference 10 years can make,” said Paul Brooks from Thoughtful Path, one of Project Hope UK’s projects.

This was the theme of their 10-year celebrations recently. The project started in February 2010 in Munsieville; and as Paul explained, the project that many thought would never work, has now become a lifeline for many of the Munsieville residents.

“We did not come to Munsieville with big pots of money, but we had big hearts,” he said as he explained how they believed in teaching the community rather than just giving handouts.

They identified four key areas where they wanted to see a change in behaviour among Munsieville residents.

In the beginning they found hundreds of children in unsafe and unregulated crèches. These children were not learning anything. Ten years on they have sent more than 30 Munsieville residents for level four Early Childhood Development (ECD) training and now, children not only learn, but parents insist on quality care for their children.

Paul said there was a conspiracy of silence around child abuse in Munsieville 10 years ago. In 2011 they opened the Munsieville Children’s Embassy that creates a safe environment for reporting incidents and giving advice. Two years after that they opened the Botshabelo Crisis Line where members of the community assist those who want to report abuse.

“Now perpetrators know there is no place for abuse and there is a zero-tolerance spirit against abuse,” Paul said.

Malnutrition was another issue, and Paul explained that pap was a staple food for many children. Their research showed that instead of five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, some children were only eating fruit and vegetables twice a week.

In the past 10 years they have built over 700 high-yield, drought-resistant family gardens. They have also launched a community-led vegetable farm and a dedicated child-nutrition centre.

Ten years ago the organisation learned that residents only took their children to the clinic if it was a matter of life and death, so thousands of children missed their vaccinations.

Then they opened the Hope Park Children’s Health Campus in 2019 and almost 8 000 children have been vaccinated in one year.

Some of their other accomplishments include the first ECD educators graduating in 2013, opening the Fulufhelo Education Centre in 2017, opening the Tlo Tlo Children’s Sport and Performance Arena, and opening the Ithemba Lethu Girls Support Centre at the Extension 4 primary school last year.

The organisation has also helped 27 children who did not have the required papers to be accepted into schools.

Sadly, after 10 years, Hope Project UK has fulfilled its commitment and it is time for the Thoughtful Path project to continue on its own.

Betty Nkoana, who runs the project, said there were still so much more they wanted to bring to the Munsieville community and any funding or sponsorship will help them continue bringing about change in their community.