Houghton resident Rebecca helps children homes
There are many orphanages that seem as if they have been forgotten about. Kemp helps about 15 shelters all around Johannesburg.
Rebecca Kemp founder of Hakuna Matata House came to South Africa from the United States of America and has always been passionate about children. With her background in special needs education, Kemp came here with a goal to help as much as she could. “My plan was to open an orphanage in my area but with property rates being so expensive, I had children and although I did a lot of fundraising it was never enough.”
Wise words from her mentor, ‘Just do something, start small’ sparked the idea for Kemp. “I knew I couldn’t open my own home but I wanted to start something where I could make a difference.”
This lead to her calling; to help orphanages that already existed. Hakuna Matata House was born in 2012.
Kemp laughed that if the community only looked around them, they would find these places much closer to than they thought, there is no need to travel far out to help or into areas that you are not familiar enough.
There are many orphanages that seem as if they have been forgotten about. Kemp helps about 15 shelters all around Johannesburg, from children’s homes to women’s shelters. Her main role was to organise the drop-off of items that are truly needed such as nappies and canned food.
“Fundraising in the States is different so I found here that people like to donate actual things like clothes and toys which is amazing but there are only so many clothes we can use.” In order to flow with the times, Kemp and her team which sometimes only consists of herself, started to sell some of the high-end items and use the money to buy food or formula, things that are needed and not often donated.
Kemp becomes weepy when she spoke about the tough conditions some of the homes face. “Some live on just bread and peanut butter, it’s hard out there. It’s heart-breaking.”
Mother of four beautiful young children, Kemp struggles to juggle fundraising and family life. She believes that fundraisers and organisations should work together more. “I work closely with Kindess Like Confetti, I’ll collect bras for her and she will collect nappies for me. It’s that little bit that helps, it’s been amazing.”
Kemp tries to connect people, so if she can’t collect in Fourways, she tries to make sure someone else can act as a drop-off point and vice versa.
The name ‘Hakuna Matata’ came from her love for Africa, “It had a good feeling and it makes people smile, so I feel it gravitated towards kids.”
Hakuna Matata House often hosted fundraising events at restaurants such as a breakfast event for women at La Vie en Rose in Killarney in May. Follow their Facebook page or website at www.hakunamatatahouse.org.za for updates on events.
“At the end of the day, I am so passionate about South Africa. You don’t have to donate a million Rand. It’s small things you can donate, you can start small, or if you don’t have money you can donate your time. There are enough great organisations in Joburg that are a 10-minute drive from your home that can always use the help.”
Talk to us by emailing our editor, Ashtyn Mackenzie, at ashtynm@caxton.co.za
