A message from our Chairperson
Read the full report here
What a year 2020 has been! A year no one will forget and one where Angels Care Centre was able to not only make a significant and lasting contribution to our community, but also expand our facilities and services offered. I am proud to say, that despite all challenges faced, we have remained true to our mission of providing for the optimal growth and development of the children we serve in a safe and loving environment.
The start of the Coronavirus pandemic, the closing of schools and the National Lockdown, necessitated we increase our focus on ensuring all our children had access to balanced nutrition on a daily basis and their families assisted through weekly food parcels. The accompanying distribution of educational materials with weekly food parcels, ensured children were cared for both physically and mentally during the lockdown period. Our general care for the community continued uninterrupted, with the distribution of clothing, winter warmth and necessary household items.
As soon as schools reopened, the Board made the decision to rent a second property for a year to accommodate all the COVID-19 social distancing requirements and enable us to continue with all our services – we were well and truly “out of space”. The property is the Old Agricultural Hall in Howick which is within walking distance from the children’s homes. With its ample space, it has been a true blessing to us all! We are hopeful that we will be able to purchase this property in the upcoming year.
Our educational programmes focused on the bridging class and those in the early years of schooling (grades RRR and RR). The pandemic necessitated movement of classrooms to accommodate health protocols and the “little ones” from Thembelihle School joined us, with our grade R children moving to their campus. This meant we catered for 100 preschool children, along with our bridging class and our few disabled children. The teachers and staff were fantastic and managed to get the children caught up in terms of their schoolwork whilst at the same time ensuring their health, safety and of course that they all received a daily dose of love, care and fun!
With regard to health and crisis care we continued all year (even through lockdown). Our nursing sister, social worker and community caregivers provided our holistic services to the most vulnerable children in our community, helping with gender based violence, abuse, health care, counselling, emergency overnight facilities and home based care.
I am hopeful this report will illustrate our commitment to the children, along with the huge impact made by our staff and volunteers, all of whom have shown up “no matter what”, putting the needs of others before their own. My most sincere thanks to each one of them, along with our donors who make all this possible!