Our Day with the Kids in The Fold Orphanage - Lephalale, South Africa
A story from Sune Schoeman, Shanahan Engineering Site Administrator, Medupi Power Station...
Since it was Mandela Day and my birthday, I really wanted to something nice for the children in and around Lephalale. The Fold is a Childrens home and a place of safety for children in the Limpopo region of South Africa. They are looked after by a house mother, and they are part of a family. They have been rescued from desperate situations, but at The Fold they can live just as children-learning, playing and caring for each other. The aim is to create a loving and secure environment where children have hope for the future.
It is on the way to Johannesburg but I noticed when driving past there were no children playing outside. So Ged Flynn, Shanahan Construction Manager – Medupi Power Station, and I decided that we would visit for the day and have a party with the children. We were joined by a group that also work with Shanahan on the Medupi Project. (Individuals are mentioned in the group photo)
We raised enough money to buy most of their monthly groceries, games for the children to play and still had some money we could leave with the orphanage for emergencies. At the start of the day, we handed the children all the games we brought for them (Soccer Balls, Soccer Goals, Cricket Set, Snakes and Ladders etc.). The children, aged from 2yrs to 15yrs, were so excited when we arrived and began playing football with our team and just having fun.
We had Adam Wilson, supervisor with Murray and Robert’s who is part of Ged’s team cooking the patties for all the hungry bodies we had. We had burgers for lunch with some crisps and drinks.
We bought each child who is in school his/her own stationary pack and one young boy asked Mickey, Founder and Owner of The Fold, “Is this what Christmas is like?” For the smaller ones (Ages 2-5), we bought them educational toys. We made sure to have something for everyone.
We were very grateful for the kind mention in The Fold’s newsletter issued days after our visit and most certainly will be visiting again soon. To view their newsletter, Click here.