Giving the homeless a place to call home
They can only keep their doors open with the help of the community, to make donations or find out more information contact Renier Westhuizen on 067 848 5780.
The House of Peace shelter in the north of Pretoria has been giving homeless people a place to call home for over nine years now.
The idea to start the non-profit company came after Renier Westhuizen came close to being homeless after his house was to be sold on foreclosure and the bank gave them 30 days to come up with R150 000.
“We went to all the big churches and organisations, but every door we knocked on was a closed door.
“With only three days left and lots of praying, God came through and sent us an old friend from the army days who was boarded from his work due to illness. He decided to give his tenth to help us in our struggle to keep our doors open,” said Westhuizen.
After his house was paid off, Westhuizen knew that he was called to help people who were in the same situation and to be the place where people can come to when they feel like the world has abandoned them.
The home holds strong Christian values and has a “no tolerance policy” towards drugs and alcohol.
They currently house 65 people which include men, women as well as children and get weekly inquiries for more rooms.
“We want to empower people and get them back to a place where they can be independent. We, however, also follow strict rules to ensure that the House of Peace lives up to its name,” added Westhuizen.
The youngest beneficiary is a newborn girl. “Her mother was pregnant when she came to the shelter and she was given a place to stay where she can look after her daughter in a safe environment.”
Westhuizen highlighted that their intake process is unique for each individual; however, addicts are kept indoors for the first month to prevent them from going back to their habits.
“We believe that if people want to stop with their addictions, they need to make the choice and stick to it.”
The family of 65 have a routine and takes turns cooking, cleaning and doing the laundry.
He added that looking after such a large number of people can be stressful because there are a lot of mouths to feed, but donations have assisted.
House of Peace can only keep its doors open with the help of the community. To make donations or find out more information, contact Westhuizen on 067 848 5780.
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