Church reaches out to 17 needy families in Giyani

“WE have been mocked in the streets, denied a place to stay, cursed and laughed at for being who we are,” said Salphina Chauke, one of the recipients of a hamper, which was recently donated by the youth group from Kingdom Tabernacle Centre Church in Giyani.

Chauke praised the pastor of the church, Apostle Lumadi, saying after all the suffering she went through, she never thought there were still people such as Lumadi, who had good hearts.

“People of your calibre are very rare. I never thought they still existed. May God richly bless you,” she said.

The church invited 17 poor families from Giyani Section F to its Tuesday evening service, where they donated hampers containing clothes and food to these families. Although not a member of the church, Chauke was one of the beneficiaries who received a donation.

Abraham Manganyi, a ward councillor in the area who is also a member of the executive committee in the Greater Giyani Municipality, said he was impressed by the fact that the beneficiaries were not all members of the church.

“I’m very happy and impressed that the church did not only choose its own members, but ordinary people from the streets.

“I have met some of these families on several occasions and I know how poor they are and how much they need this help,” said Manganyi.

“Surely everybody knows of someone who is less fortunate. If we could all help those people, we could make the country a better place to live in.”

Asked how the church identified beneficiaries, Lumadi said the church had a feeding scheme programme which catered for more than 90 children daily.

“We know where they come from and we know their families, so it was easy for us to identify the families that deserved assistance,” he said.

Speaking about helping others, the pastor said giving to charity meant that you had to share what little you had.

“You don’t have to wait until you are rich before you can think of donating to others,” he said.