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Hi everyone!I know it’s sinfully long since I wrote but it was a hectic last few days. When I last wrote we had sent two of the staff shopping for new kitchen and cleaning equipment. Well, I can tell you they came back very happy indeed! On Thursday morning we went shopping for our goodbye party. We decided to take the boys to St. George’s Park after school and play party games there like musical chairs and Simon says. We thought it would be nice to be outdoors and let them run around a bit. Then give them a party pack…lets face it party packs were always the best part of any party! After the park we decided we would bring them to Mc Donald’s for dinner and give them each their present there. We wrote them each a letter and put it in an envelope along with 5 pictures of themselves and one of the four volunteers. We thought it would be nice for them to christen their new pin boards!

It’s my last week! I can’t believe it’s gone by so quickly! But it started off great. Two of the volunteers went west along the Garden Route this weekend so myself and the other volunteer stayed with a local family who house volunteers regularly. They are just the most welcoming, open, friendly people I have ever met. Their door is open to everyone and there is always family calling in to say hi. And we ate great food...can’t beat home cooking! It was wonderful to just relax, read a book and chat. And everyone was interested in Irish history, especially the whole Catholic/Protestant thing, seems everyone sees some similarities between our history and their own. So we stayed Sunday night as well since the other volunteers weren’t back til Monday evening. Yesterday  then the Ithemba volunteer joined us for the day to experience another project and it suited perfectly as we were two short. And can I just say how proud I am of the work that’s been  done!

I finally got back to Helenvale! On Wednesday morning we all went to Bayview  Primary to visit the Ready4Life project. It was so good to see Avril again and all the staff still ask about us! And for my volunteer friends you’ll be glad to hear the desks are surviving wellJ . So in true R4L fashion we all had tea first then had a look around the school and met the teachers. One of the teachers who had been getting computer lessons from myself and Marcel got married this week so we saw pictures of the big day taken by the current volunteers and it looked great. After that Avril took us for a walk up to Helenvale Primary to see R4L Back to School. There were a lot of students missing as they were with Franklin...going back to school! What an amazing thing to have achieved! Five of them returned to mainstream schools on Wednesday and the volunteers went with them, they looked like proud parents it was really great to see.

Let me start by saying sorry for the lack of posts recently, serious lack of internet! So these blogs are coming in bulk as I’ve written them as I went in hopes of posting them when I got the chance. So now to get you up to date...We got our money cleared for the painting project so we now have all our paint and equipment bought, and got the ceiling painted. The walls we’re gonna make a start with on Tuesday, it’s gonna be a beautiful bright green colour so hopefully the boys will like it! So from Tuesday we’re going to make a big effort to get the room done as time is flying by and we don’t want to leave with it unfinished. But the weekend came quickly which meant it was time for our trip to Jeffrey’s Bay.Most of the boys only found out on Friday about the trip and they were really excited. It meant being at Liebenhaus at 7.30 a.m. which was a bit of a challenge but we got there! Helped get the boys ready and load everything into the combi.

Back again!You might notice some overlapping of my posts since our internet is down at the moment so I’m writing as I go and posting when I can!Today was a great day at Liebenhaus! This morning we got the go ahead from the manager for our project and even got around to buying some paint! So tomorrow we can make a start on the ceiling in the boys room cos we really want to just get started with it! So meetings and shopping took up the morning and then the boys start turning up from school, they all go to different schools and are in different classes so from about half 12 there is usually boys arriving. It was one of the boys birthdays today so we all sang for him when he got home from school...I even sang in Irish!!! It didn’t sound pretty haha! They all got candy apples today as well which meant red faces and hands all over the place! We all played around outside until lunch and I learned how to throw a rugby ball properly from one of the older boys.

Hi everyone! Sorry it’s been so long! It was a full first week! Got to spend lots of time with the boys as we worked Saturday and Sunday. They are really great kids we have such a great time with them. I’m learning quickly about football, volleyball, rugby etc! And the smaller kids are just like little monkeys, they climb all over you, no fear of falling or anything! One of the volunteers is giving computer lessons to the smaller boys to get them accustomed to it, just playing games and things like that. They all love it, dying for their turn to come! And the Japanese volunteer is taking them a few at a time for origami which they think is brilliant! I’m waiting for my turn haha! So the weekend came and it was nice to spend time with the boys in  a more relaxed way. We played around, watched some t.v., basically the same things we all do on our days off!

Hi everyone!!!Well I’ve moved house now and started my new project at Liebenhaus! Moved on Monday and met the other new volunteers. This time we have all girls, two dutch and one Japanese girl. The new house is lovely, nice and cosy! It’s a new area as well so I’ve only just about managed to keep my bearings! So we’re pretty well settled in now, finding our feet. It’s a bit strange being the only one who already is fairly well orientated, trying to keep in mind that the other girls have a lot more to adjust to. Yesterday we had our first look at Liebenhaus which is a project of Childline P.E. and supported by the Department of Social Development. Currently there are 23 boys resident in the home, aged between 6 and 17. Yesterday we just met the staff and got a look around the home so we could get acquainted with the project. It seems really well run, lots of structure and support for the boys, with a policy of consequences rather than corporal punishment.

Well I had a great week in Cape Town in the company of Marcel and Bram, two more volunteers. The bus took 12 hrs but we had lots of stops and dvds playing so it was really fine. I did all the tourist things: Table Mountain, District Six Museum, Company Gardens, Cape of Good Hope and Camps Bay. But I really have to tell you about Mamma Africa’s. It’s a restaurant that serves traditional African food, including ostrich, kudu, springbok and crocodile. And I tried it all haha! Ostrich is the leanest red meat you can eat by the way! And it doesn’t hurt that it tastes delicious! Mum you will be so proud of my broadened gastronomic tastes! On top of the great food and friendly staff was a fantastic live band playing instruments. It was just pure African culture it was amazing! Even though it has become a tourist haven, it doesn’t have that touristy feeling, just some home-style charm! Now you probably noticed that missing from my list of excursions is Robben Island.

So it’s the end of a very busy week, and apologies for the lack of contact! But I’ll fill you in now! Yesterday was the last day of the project and we had our music bash which we organised for the community. It was a great success and everyone really enjoyed themselves I think! It was great to draw attention to our presence in the area by doing something positive. And the group were very forgiving when us international volunteers sang a medley of Dutch and English children’s songs! And before anyone asks there is no video evidence of this for me to be blackmailed with later…for African eyes only haha!

Hey everyone!

Yesterday was amazing. We went with all the community stars and the students who have been helping with the school renovations to Amakhala Game Reserve. None of the kids or the local volunteers had ever been to a game park or seen any of the animals that make up the parks inhabitants. Many of them had never even been on a bus! So it was a whole day of excitement and firsts. The bus was a bit of an ordeal but it got us to the right place! We were met by 5 jeeps and were brought by guide around the park for 3hrs. And it was fantastic! There was 4x4 driving on all kinds of rough terrain which was so exciting for the kids…and me too! We saw elephants, zebras, giraffes, wildebeests and lots of breeds of antelope. Some of the groups even caught a glimpse of the rhino! It was really great to see the children and the community stars so animated they had never experienced anything like it. The wilds of Helenvale are not quite the same as the wilds of the African bush.

So the talent show and Westlife rendition was a pretty good way to end the week. After we finished up, the five of us volunteers went with Beronique, one of the stars, to meet her family and see her home. Her mother is blind so she has to do most of the things around the house. It was so touching to be invited in and her family were so welcoming, thanking us for the opportunity we had given their daughter. We took pictures with her little brothers and chatted for a while before we left. The house holds 7, with some of the younger boys sleeping on a mattress in the living room. It’s such a small house but they really have made it beautiful, with pictures of their children and grandchildren all around the walls. They are a truly loving family, very supportive of their kids, which I’ve come to learn is not necessarily the norm around Helenvale.

On Tuesday Lloyd walked out in the middle of the day without a word. On Wednesday then he never came in. But yesterday he was back and arrived at 8.45! I was so happy to see him. We all apologised for having made him feel not part of the group or unable to participate. In computer skills we did C.V.s and Lloyd only finished primary school. He also seems dyslexic. I felt awful for not having noticed or accommodated his weaknesses, no wonder he bolted. Later in Life Skills he was talking and contributing in English and, if he got stuck, in Afrikaans. It was fantastic! He said on Friday he would sing Westlife, I couldn’t believe it! I told him if he sang a Westlife song I would pay him R10. I can’t believe they know Westlife here!!! So this morning when Lloyd and Granton turned up at half 8, I nearly died, I had to sit down! Lloyd was full of energy, enthusiastic to get involved and happy to be there. It was so great to see and such a change from the previous days.

Over the last two days I have heard stories from one of the community stars in my group that have broken my heart. On Tuesday, Clifford told us that a year ago he had major operation on his kidneys which were damaged because of excess drinking. He’s 22. While in hospital, none of his 4 sisters, 7 brothers, or mother came to visit him. The family of the guy in the next bed visited him instead, which he said was worse, “I don’t want someone else’s family visiting me I want my own.” When he was released from hospital nobody came to collect him and he made his own way home in a taxi. A taxi here means a dirty, crowded mini-bus with loud music and manic driving. When I asked about his family he said that all 12 sibling live at home but live separately…if you get killed that was your own doing.