Port Elizabeth
SOS’s family strengthening program in Port Elizabeth works through partners to reach vulnerable children and their families. One of their partnerships is with Hospice, a home-based care organization that provides palliative care to terminally-ill adults (most of whom are HIV positive). SOS works with the children in these largely AIDS-affected families. The program assists 52 families, with 87 children.
Nomfundo, a volunteer from the community who has worked with Hospice for several years, acts as the program’s fieldworker. She assists the beneficiaries who are HIV+ (adults and children) to access disability grants, visits children who are ill, monitors the children’s school attendance and ensures they have school uniforms, provides groceries to the families and supervises work in the program’s communal vegetable garden. Every Saturday, she organizes games and sports for the children, which provides a great opportunity for them to discuss their problems in a friendly environment. She also sits with a support group that meets once per week. On top of this demanding schedule, she meets with the Hospice staff two days per week to compare notes
Nomfundo is very passionate about her work. She trembles when she speaks about the beneficiaries of the program. Her work is strenuous and emotionally draining, yet she has dedicated herself to ensuring the wellbeing of these children.
Another partnership that SOS participates in is Phakamisa Gqebera, a coalition of seven non-governmental organizations (NGOs), all working in the Walmer township. The objective of the coalition is to provide integrated social and welfare services to the community of Walmer Gqebera. The initiative was lunched in 1999.
The township of Walmer is faced with a multitude of interrelated socio-economic problems – poverty, unemployment, alcoholism, and HIV/AIDS, to name a few. Although it is difficult to determine exact numbers – the incidence of HIV/AIDS is very high. There is also a lot of stigma associated with the virus, which leads people to be very secretive about their status.
Previously, the individual NGOs had found it difficult to work in community because of the lack of trust of outsiders. One of the reasons was that while they were offering a lot of services, they had not consulted the community about its needs. On forming the coalition, they decided to begin the initiative with greater participation from the community. They conducted a survey in the township using community members, which identified three priorities: crime, poverty and HIV/AIDS. A “road show” was brought to the township to inform the community of the survey results and to launch Phakamisa Gqebera. This way the community had greater awareness of the initiative and felt more involved from the beginning.
The One-Stop Centre is an innovative resource that has been developed for the community by Phakamisa Gqebera. The One-Stop Centre is essentially a referral service or “clearing house” that directs people to the various services offered by all partners. Max, the Centre’s Coordinator, explains that the Centre has addressed the problem of services being fragmented and duplicated. He observes that what was really needed was a planning process, in order to connect the right human resources to the people with the needs. As clients come to the Centre, it is possible to take a holistic and personalized approach to their problems by directing them towards the services which can address their individual needs. Each partner has a regular time slot at the Centre, and the social workers work onsite. The centre is located directly in the community, which reduces transport barriers. The Coordinator’s salary and the Centre’s operational costs are shared equally by partners. Max feels that the key to success is the marketing of Centre; PR and good visibility are extremely important to its functioning.
The initiative has also addressed the issue of the lack of coordination and cooperation between the many community-based organizations (CBOs) present in Walmer, and the need for them to be connected with the larger organizations. Phakamisa Gqebera has formed a social development forum to enable CBOs to work with the coalition partners. Community forums composed of the relevant stakeholders have been formed for each for each priority identified by the survey. The coalition itself has been divided into priority teams to address these issues.
Max grew up and attended school in Walmer, but he did not always intend to work in the community. He left to pursue further schooling in Cape Town and joined a social club that organized blankets and clothing for street children. This experience was a real eye-opener for him and led him to reflect on the situation in his own community, and return home to take action. He has been a great asset to Phakamisa Gqebera; because he comes from Walmer he understands the challenges faced by the community and is well-received by community members. Reflecting on his experience, he comments that as people come to him to talk about their problems "you learn to listen a lot and talk less".
Addressing the impact of HIV/AIDS affects him on a personal and professional level, “Week-in, week-out, someone you know dies of HIV/AIDS.” Max believes that part of the solution is to develop income-generating/employment projects, in order to provide motivation for the young people in the community. If they can find work, he believes, there will be a change in their behaviour. The age group most affected by HIV/AIDS in Walmer is 18-24, and they need something to motivate them to help them to become independent. Max has faith that “slowly but surely we are going to turn the corner”.
Nomfundo, a volunteer from the community who has worked with Hospice for several years, acts as the program’s fieldworker. She assists the beneficiaries who are HIV+ (adults and children) to access disability grants, visits children who are ill, monitors the children’s school attendance and ensures they have school uniforms, provides groceries to the families and supervises work in the program’s communal vegetable garden. Every Saturday, she organizes games and sports for the children, which provides a great opportunity for them to discuss their problems in a friendly environment. She also sits with a support group that meets once per week. On top of this demanding schedule, she meets with the Hospice staff two days per week to compare notes
Nomfundo is very passionate about her work. She trembles when she speaks about the beneficiaries of the program. Her work is strenuous and emotionally draining, yet she has dedicated herself to ensuring the wellbeing of these children.
Another partnership that SOS participates in is Phakamisa Gqebera, a coalition of seven non-governmental organizations (NGOs), all working in the Walmer township. The objective of the coalition is to provide integrated social and welfare services to the community of Walmer Gqebera. The initiative was lunched in 1999.
The township of Walmer is faced with a multitude of interrelated socio-economic problems – poverty, unemployment, alcoholism, and HIV/AIDS, to name a few. Although it is difficult to determine exact numbers – the incidence of HIV/AIDS is very high. There is also a lot of stigma associated with the virus, which leads people to be very secretive about their status.
Previously, the individual NGOs had found it difficult to work in community because of the lack of trust of outsiders. One of the reasons was that while they were offering a lot of services, they had not consulted the community about its needs. On forming the coalition, they decided to begin the initiative with greater participation from the community. They conducted a survey in the township using community members, which identified three priorities: crime, poverty and HIV/AIDS. A “road show” was brought to the township to inform the community of the survey results and to launch Phakamisa Gqebera. This way the community had greater awareness of the initiative and felt more involved from the beginning.
The One-Stop Centre is an innovative resource that has been developed for the community by Phakamisa Gqebera. The One-Stop Centre is essentially a referral service or “clearing house” that directs people to the various services offered by all partners. Max, the Centre’s Coordinator, explains that the Centre has addressed the problem of services being fragmented and duplicated. He observes that what was really needed was a planning process, in order to connect the right human resources to the people with the needs. As clients come to the Centre, it is possible to take a holistic and personalized approach to their problems by directing them towards the services which can address their individual needs. Each partner has a regular time slot at the Centre, and the social workers work onsite. The centre is located directly in the community, which reduces transport barriers. The Coordinator’s salary and the Centre’s operational costs are shared equally by partners. Max feels that the key to success is the marketing of Centre; PR and good visibility are extremely important to its functioning.
The initiative has also addressed the issue of the lack of coordination and cooperation between the many community-based organizations (CBOs) present in Walmer, and the need for them to be connected with the larger organizations. Phakamisa Gqebera has formed a social development forum to enable CBOs to work with the coalition partners. Community forums composed of the relevant stakeholders have been formed for each for each priority identified by the survey. The coalition itself has been divided into priority teams to address these issues.
Max grew up and attended school in Walmer, but he did not always intend to work in the community. He left to pursue further schooling in Cape Town and joined a social club that organized blankets and clothing for street children. This experience was a real eye-opener for him and led him to reflect on the situation in his own community, and return home to take action. He has been a great asset to Phakamisa Gqebera; because he comes from Walmer he understands the challenges faced by the community and is well-received by community members. Reflecting on his experience, he comments that as people come to him to talk about their problems "you learn to listen a lot and talk less".
Addressing the impact of HIV/AIDS affects him on a personal and professional level, “Week-in, week-out, someone you know dies of HIV/AIDS.” Max believes that part of the solution is to develop income-generating/employment projects, in order to provide motivation for the young people in the community. If they can find work, he believes, there will be a change in their behaviour. The age group most affected by HIV/AIDS in Walmer is 18-24, and they need something to motivate them to help them to become independent. Max has faith that “slowly but surely we are going to turn the corner”.
posted by Dan at 1:40 p.m.
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