Lockdown reality – help Cape Flats families in crisis
Author: Christel House South Africa
Christel House SA, a non-profit school based in Ottery, Cape Town, is closed as part of the national lockdown, yet school staff are still hard at work trying to raise funds for the school’s most at-risk families and is appealing to the public for help.
Christel House has set up an eWallet system for these families where they will receive a small stipend every week for the next 8 weeks to purchase basic food supplies for their families and to assist with academic support for students during this crisis.
R250 can support one family for two weeks, R500 will help the family for one month, and R1000 will support the family for two months.
All of the students who attend Christel House come from severely impoverished homes, but the families that have been selected for the stipend are particularly destitute - many only receiving a single social grant to meet all of their basic needs. Many of the household’s struggle with food scarcity, chronic illnesses, recent traumatic events such as fires or the passing of a breadwinner and some of the households are headed by grandparents.
Mrs Yvonne Perries, the mother of two Christel House SA students (Grade 6 and Grade 10) received the eWallet announcement from the school. She lives in an informal settlement in Strandfontein and her household consists of 11 people who share bathroom facilities with three to four other families. “The lockdown has been tough for us and some of the people in my community. I was worried that we wouldn’t have anything to eat over the Easter weekend but then we received the great news from the school. We are so grateful, and I would like to thank Christel House SA and each of the donors involved.”
“Thank you to all of our donors. So many people came forward to support , many contributing from their personal, already stretched pockets. With all the help, we’ve almost reached our target for this campaign. We have however received requests from more families, asking for our support. Many parents who worked in daily paid jobs before the lockdown are now not earning anymore and are struggling to provide their families with the essentials. We urge the public to keep donating to charitable organisations like ours so that we can overcome this difficult and uncertain period together,” says Adri Marais, the CEO of Christel House South Africa.
To donate to Christel House SA and support families in need, visit: https://www.givengain.com/cc/help-a-family-in-crisis-during-lockdown/donate/#start
Please note that all South African donors will receive Section 18A tax certificates and businesses can also earn BEE points for their contributions.