In an effort to inspire and instil hope for foster children in Gugulethu, Lokshin Pioneers together with Old Mutual organised a surprise early Christmas event.
Held at the Gugulethu South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) offices on Friday 13 December, 85 children from various centres in the area received secret santa gifts.
Lokshin Pioneers is a non-profit organisation (NPO) based in Gugulethu, which works closely with disadvantaged communities in the province to assist them with their needs.
Organisation founder Sithembele Ntaba says the special event was dedicated to children. He said the aim was to entertain and show them love.
“We invited children from Unako Children’s Home Care from Barcelona informal settlement and other children who are staying with their foster parents. The problem is that there are few foster care centres in Gugulethu, most of the children are staying with the grannies and so on. Since it’s Christmas time we decided to organise an event to give them presents to show them love,” he said, adding that the children were aged between 6 and 16. He said they believe that every child has the right to dignity. Ntaba stated that they encouraged them to focus on their studies instead of doing negative things. “We wanted to instil the die-hard attitude and encouraged them to focus on their studies instead of gallivanting on the streets. They must know that their backgrounds do not determine their future,” said Ntaba.
Principal of Unako Children’s Home Care, Nosisi Ndiki said at least 35 of their children benefited from the event. She expressed her gratitude to the organisers for showing love to the children.
“We thank Lokshin Pioneers and Old Mutual for entertaining and showing love to our children. They felt so special and loved. They brought smiles to their faces and made them forget about some of the challenges that they are facing,” said Ndiki. She mentioned toothpaste, toothbrush, snacks, noodles etc as some of the presents that were given to the children. Ndiki urged other local organisations to also support homes like theirs.
