The best birthday gifts the children of St Laurence’s could imagine
The staff and children at St Laurence's Children's Haven have started the year with huge smiles on their faces and a hoard of gratitude to be shared.
While birthdays become less significant and more taboo as people get older, children relish in the joy of becoming one year older and having a day where people celebrate them.
While children’s homes do everything they can to make birthdays special for the youngsters in their care, affordability often becomes a huge issue, especially in these uncertain times. However, while 2021 may not have started in the way everyone wanted, St Laurence’s Children’s Haven has started the year with huge smiles and a hoard of gratitude to be shared.
With 27 children in their care between the ages of 27 months and 20 years, St Laurence’s now has a lot less to worry about when it comes to the celebrations thanks to Makarios Cake Designs and a few Roodepoort residents with huge hearts.
The talented team of Makarios has pledged to make scrumptious birthday cakes for each of the upcoming birthdays, and what they have delivered so far is astounding. Besides the cake, children often have one thing on their mind when it comes to their birthdays: the gift.
After working with St Laurence’s for years and helping collect Santa Shoebox donations for the home in December, a Horison resident decided she wanted to do more for the home out of the goodness of her heart. Yolandi Bawden then started the initiative she has dubbed Saint by Saint, where community members can pledge to sponsor one child at the home with a birthday gift to make the celebrations that much more special.
The response was overwhelming and five days into the year, all 27 children already had a sponsor for their gift. “It’s really a huge blessing for us. We’ve been praying for this for a while because it makes their birthday super special!” said Abigail Branders, one of the caretakers at St Laurence’s. “We cannot thank everyone enough,” she continued.
It is positive stories like these that spread hope in such miserable times as these, and even though the people behind these initiatives and donations are not after recognition, their selflessness is always appreciated by non-profits such as St Laurence’s.
Even though all of the children who live in the Haven currently have a sponsor, St Laurence’s does bring in new children who need help throughout the year, therefore there will always be a need for more donations. To find out how you may be able to assist the Haven, call 011 760 2504 or visit https://childrenshaven.co.za/.
If you would like to find out more about sponsoring a birthday gift for one of the children (or even Christmas gifts) contact Yolandi on 062 480 9003 or email admin@landigoodies.co.za.
If you would like to find out more about Makarios Cake Designs, visit www.makarioscakedesigns.weebly.com.
