We decided at the beginning of this year, which is our 10th year of existence, to get involved with a charity so that we could give back because we have been blessed in abundance over the past 10 years.

It was a difficult task to identify an organisation to partner with because we did not want to get involved with a charity who already receives lots of sponsorships. We really wanted to find an organisation with a very real need. As an Events Management company we have the organisational capability and the database of clients, potential clients and contacts to really make a difference in someone’s life.

We came across the Haven of Strength shortly after we started our investigations and had an initial discussion with the founder Isabelle Petersen and her daughter Avril.

It was an incredibly humbling experience which left us crying and laughing during the meeting. We left with an admiration for the enormous task they have fulfilled every day for the past 15 years, with virtually no help and no funds. Their spirit, energy and positive outlook amidst very difficult circumstances is a real inspiration.

We want to give our time and skills to make a difference to the Haven of Strength and want to take the liberty of requesting you to join us with this project.  In the document below, we outline what the organisation is all about and we attach a list of their needs.

Our aim is to get as much sponsorship as possible, in the form of money, food or equipment. We will arrange a day where anyone of the sponsors can join us to hand over everything to the Haven of Strength.

This is a project that we want to be involved with for as long as possible. Regular updates will be emailed to everyone on our database to communicate the progress with this worthy cause.

We would therefore like to ask you to consider this wonderful cause and partner with us in making a difference for these children.

Thank you for taking the time to get to know Haven of Strength.
 
For donations in any form or size, please contact our offices.

NOT JUST ANOTHER FEEDING SCHEME
Non-Profit Organisation Registration number:  057-745

We believe that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Learners who are hungry have diminished concentration levels, they lack energy to do what is required of them and more often than not pose problems to the teachers and other learners in their class.

Haven of Strength saw that many learners go to school hungry. It is, therefore, for this reason that we recognized a need for a Breakfast Feeding Scheme.

The pilot project launched at Hillwood Primary School in Lavender Hill, where 970 learners are currently attending. At present we are providing a nutritious breakfast 3 times a week. The breakfast is in the form of a bowl of cereal such as Jungle Oats, Weetbix, Pronutro and Mielie Pap. Our financial situation, unfortunately, allows us to only feed 300 of these learners a day. It's sad to see many of the kids turned away when there isn't any more cereal left for them. Hillwood Primary was an area that was notorious for gang activity. Gangs used to shoot over and around the building. Learners had to remain on the floor of classrooms to avoid being victims and that is the reason why this school touched their hearts.

In addition to the Breakfast Feeding Scheme, it is also our desire to feed kids from the community with a delicious plate of food. This will be done at least 2 times a week or as our financial situation allows.

Haven of Strength aims to be "Not Just Another Feeding Scheme." Many people have launched feeding schemes which is great because it fills a need in the community. There's just one problem though. The child gets fed and leaves with… nothing really.

n the same day that same child goes to the next feeding scheme, gets fed and again leaves with... nothing. When we launched Haven of Strength, our main "Policy" was that we would aim to empower all those who cross our paths. We would make certain that they leave with knowledge that will empower them for the future.In May 2008 the Grade R, 1 & 2 learners did the Colgate Bright Smiles Bright Future Programme.

This programme is in the form of a kit that contains: toothbrushes, toothpaste, posters on hygiene, stickers, colouring pages and an activity book for the teachers to use to educate the learners regarding proper hygiene. We arranged for the kits to be sent to us from Colgate and we, in turn, passed these kits onto the respective teachers. The kids loved the programme, as each of them left with renewed knowledge of proper brushing of the teeth and a toothbrush and tube of toothpaste, of course. It was exciting seeing these kids enjoy the programme.

For 3 days from the 26th May 2008 all Hillwood Primary learners celebrated Child Protection week with Childline. We have arranged that Childline host "workshops" for the learners during this week.

The workshops included talks on: good and bad touching, who to call when you've been abused, good and bad secrets, correct names for your body parts, etc. There is such a great need for this type of programme in our community and we are glad that all of the schools' learners will benefit from the Childline workshops.

Over and above these two projects, they have also taken on board a pre primary school called Sing Along Sandy for children from babies to age 4. The teachers provide food for these children from their own meager salaries.

Haven of Strength received R5000 grant per year for their work and sponsorship in the form of food from Woolworths Lakeside. This is the formal extent of their sponsorships.

The cost of feeding a learner breakfast per day is estimated at R2.50 per child, therefore R750.00 per day, R9 000.00 per month!