THE Tongaat Child and Family Welfare Society wants volunteers and companies to help them beautify their Pure Hearts Safehouse, with the aim of making it more visually and child-friendly for the traumatised children they care for.
The society has been recognised as the first port of call for orphaned and abandoned children in Tongaat; as well as children subjected to extreme neglect, and physical and sexual abuse.
Jo Moodley, manager of the society, said child abuse had a devastating effect on the physical, mental and emotional wellbeing of every child.
“Children enter the society’s doors with physical scars, bruises, cuts and burn marks but far worse are the emotional scars they carry with them. One of the many challenges the society faced as a child protection agency is time or the lack thereof. Cases are brought to the attention of the society late in the day, sometimes prior to office closure. This gives social workers restricted time to undertake sound investigations and secure suitable placements with screened caregivers.
“Due to the ongoing challenges being faced in the pursuit of temporary safe care, the community urgently required a crisis care facility. The Pure Hearts Safe House was born to meet the immediate needs of the abandoned, abused and neglected children in the community, to provide an immediate safe haven for our vulnerable children in times of crisis.”
The Pure Hearts Safe House was launched in November 2018 at the society’s premises. Construction is complete, but the society needs help with some of the finishing touches on their home.
“We need help to beautify the home with murals to make it more child-friendly. We also need sponsorship for airconditioning and assistance with revamping the reception area in the office building. If you are unable to come in and help, in lieu of your 67 minutes of service you can donate R67 towards the running costs.”
She said the society also assisted underprivileged crèches in the area.
“We have 100 children at two separate crèches, who we are trying to spoil during Mandela Month. We request a R20 donation to buy the kids socks, treat them to a warm meal on the day and goodie bags. We welcome donations towards the meals or the bags.”
For more information, call the society on 032 944 1514 or email: purehearts@tcw.org.za