North Coast churches and NGOs rally for the helpless

Scores of non-profit organisations and private individuals on the North Coast have rallied to help the less fortunate, struggling on the back foot during the Covid-19 lockdown.

The jobless, single parents and sole breadwinners are battling to make ends meet in the hardest hit communities of the North Coast from Tongaat to Shakaskraal and Groutville.

Many residents relied on soup kitchens run by churches and NGOs, many of which were forced to close their doors.

The North Coast Courier spoke with a few of the non-profit organisations and home-based operations to find out what they were doing and just what the situation was like on the front-lines.

It is all hands on deck for the staff of Vision 153, a local non-profit organisation which primarily sees to the caring of widows and orphans from Groutville to Tongaat.

The non-profit obtained a permit to continue operations.

Normally, the team at Vision 153 have their hands full with feeding some 1 340 adults and children a month.

However, head of the non-profit organisation, Lesley Forrest said their workload had doubled since the start of the Covid-19 lockdown.

“Our teams are working round the clock as we partner with private individuals and other organisations such as Linc Church, Lali Foods, The North Coast Courier Orphan Fund and Umhlali Saps,” she said.

As is the case for other non-profits, Vision 153 have had to shut down its regular soup kitchens which ran at Shakaskraal and Groutville to avoid people gathering in large numbers.

“Instead, we have been driving food parcels through social media and have received wonderful support.”

To date, Vision 153 have raised over R22 000 which will be used to order food parcels and clean water to be distributed to people in need.

Forrest said their main focus has shifted toward ensuring that everyone in need makes it through the lockdown.

“Would it not be a wonderful thing to say at the end of all this that our communities came together as one so that not a single soul went without food during this time?” asked Forrest.

And that is exactly what the community and other organisations are seeing to, according to Umhlali Saps communications officer, Captain Vinny Pillay.

“Some of the donations included 80 kilograms of rice, tinned food and tea,” said the grateful Captain Pillay.

Brettenwood Soups; Made with Love, a collective group of the estate’s residents, are helping by cooking up a storm in their kitchens.

Member Karen Doveton said their group was borne from a request for help from The North Coast Courier Orphan Fund.

“I decided to forward the message to the Brettenwood community and the response was overwhelming,” said Doveton.

The initiative kicked-off so well that estate manager Malcolm Carlyle has given them access to the Woody’s Café chest freezer so that more soup could be stored before distribution is done by Umhlali Saps.

“We have had monetary donations, containers donated and households cooking and making soups in their own kitchens. It has been very heartening to see this embraced by so many, and to be a part of this,” said Doveton. To date, 122 batches of soup have been made.

The Orphan Fund’s Rose Stephenson thanked the community – Brettenwood and others – for rallying to the cause.

“We would like to keep the pace going, especially since so many more people are now essentially stuck without a form of income while in lockdown. Some may have been able to plan after the March pay-day however, many will not receive salaries during April, so we can expect an increase in need,” said Stephenson.

Through the Covid-19 campaign the Orphan Fund has raised nearly R12 000 for food parcels and water.

• Visit courierorphanfund.co.za for bank details.

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