By Mary Lant | Marketing & International Fundraising Manager
At the end of June, we received a phone call from a concerned community neighbour about a house fire. Our outreach team went to visit the site and found a home almost completely destroyed and a family distraught.
The fire was cause by paraffin - unfortunately, a commonplace incident in our community. Families who don't have electricity rely on paraffin stoves, which also help to warm the house during this bitterly cold South African winter. Unfortunately, they are susceptible to explosive fires - destroying the home and everything inside.
Brightness and his family had lost their furniture, car, clothing, documents and food supply. We were able to give them food parcels and some clothing donations we had on hand. The public responded to a social media post, traveling across town to deliver preloved furniture. Then, thanks to YOUR donations to our official Social Relief Fund, we were able to help Brightness and his family repair the damage and improve the house to a better state than before the fire!
We used the funds to help plaster their floors, which were previously just sand with a blanket thrown on top. We repaired doors and fixed broken windows. We provided more food parcels, clothing and a couch to help them get through this tough time and rebuild.
The name of our organisation translate to "Light for the People" in our language, Setswana. Thank you for enabling us to provide resources, encouragement and hope for the people of Mabopane!
In light of the harsh economic impact of COVID, our country's economic instability, the riots and looting in recent weeks, political tension, and high unemployment, we are expecting an ever growing need for basic social relief from families living on the edge. If you are able, please consider becoming a monthly donor to our Social Relief Fund to ensure we can continue helping the destitute rise up from their circumstances. The amount doesn't matter - small gestures add up to big impact!
Links:
Project reports on GlobalGiving are posted directly to globalgiving.org by Project Leaders as they are completed, generally every 3-4 months. To protect the integrity of these documents, GlobalGiving does not alter them; therefore you may find some language or formatting issues.
If you donate to this project or have donated to this project, you can receive an email when this project posts a report. You can also subscribe for reports without donating.
Support this important cause by creating a personalized fundraising page.
Start a Fundraiser
